


Our Love Never Dies

by Raven052



Series: Tonight Belongs... [4]
Category: My Chemical Romance
Genre: Blood Drinking, Blood Play, Demons, Dreams, Multi, Multiple Voices, Vampire Feeding, Werewolf, detailed original lore, incubus, self inflicted starvation, transformations, vampire, violence towards 'innocents'
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-06-21
Updated: 2016-05-08
Packaged: 2018-04-05 12:06:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 8
Words: 50,661
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4179231
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Raven052/pseuds/Raven052
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Once again we catch up with the vampire... And the newly turned vampire/werewolf hybrid.<br/>The transformation seems to have gone perfectly.<br/>But.<br/>There's something new, different about Frank. It has been waiting.<br/>And it might just be more than the couple can deal with.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A New Life After Death, It's Fucking Perfect

**Author's Note:**

> There is a very heavy LeATHERMOUTH influence in this particular mini series. Both the story title and the chapter title comes from Bodysnatchers 4 Ever... Watch out for more references throughout this series too.

The day had been a slow one.  
But not unpleasantly so. 

Frank had mostly been shifting in and out of sleep. Gerard told him that was normal.  
It was normal for newly turned vampires to feel exhausted, to sleep a lot to begin with.  
Dying can really take it out of you, after all.  
As can coming back from the dead.  
“In time though… You’ll spent most of your time awake. We vampires are terrible insomniacs.” Gerard told him, his voice hushed in the way it had been through the day, gentle, careful. Allowing Frank to adjust to the new situation, and careful not to be too loud, in case he was drifting back to sleep again.  
He brushed his hand up through Frank’s hair again, pushing it back.  
Frank’s skin was still slightly warm, not yet the typically cool temperature of a vampire. Gerard couldn’t quite figure out how that made him feel. To notice this little remnant. Perhaps a little part of him was sad, to know it wouldn’t last.  
But, then again.  
How could they be sure of that? 

“I’m not… Exactly… All vampire though, am I?” Frank said, quietly. His eyes were closed, but he was awake, for now.  
“There’s still… There must still be part of me that’s wolf.”  
As if to corroborate this fact, his wolf stirred, very quietly, it clearly still sleeping. 

Frank had been a werewolf for just over a year and a half now.  
As if that hadn’t been difficult enough, he’d then met Gerard, who was a vampire.  
And yes, the fabled rivalry is true.  
Except, in their case, things were a little more… Complicated  
Frank’s wolf had responded to Gerard in an unexpected way, making it very clear that Gerard was, in fact, Frank’s alpha, which, put most simply, meant he was the one that Frank was ‘meant’ to be with. And both men were more than willing to accept this, falling for one another very, very fast.  
That did not mean that either Frank’s wolf pack, or Gerard’s vampire clan, was happy about this.  
And, now, they’d finally done something likely to upset both tribes even more.  
Gerard had turned Frank, just two nights previous. And, though the change had clearly been successful, neither were quite sure exactly how the two natures were combined within Frank now. 

“You’re not all vampire, no.” Gerard said, carefully. “But you’re not all wolf anymore, either.”  
He smiled, slightly, lovingly, and bent to kiss Frank’s forehead. “You’re something new.” 

They’d spent almost the whole time, since Frank had been turned, back in Frank’s bed, Gerard carefully, almost protectively curled around Frank, staying awake, watching over Frank, watching for any complications. Waiting for the vampire gene to continue working in to Frank’s system, sinking in. Knowing there’d be questions, knowing that, with the unusual circumstances, there’d be some questions he simply would not be able to answer. 

Frank was snoring, very softly, his mouth open just enough that Gerard could see the tips of his new fangs.  
It made Gerard proud, knowing he’d created those.  
The fangs really did suit him.  
Then, as Gerard watched, Frank’s mouth closed, opened again. His tongue darted out, licked his lips, and his brow creased slightly, wincing, a soft whine escaping him as he licked his lips again. 

Gerard recognised this, quickly. He knew that, even awake, Frank wouldn’t yet know exactly how to explain what he was feeling, what he wanted. He wouldn’t recognise it, not yet.  
Gerard shifted himself up to a sitting position, then very gently shook Frank awake.  
Eyes still half closed, Frank mumbled something incoherent.  
“It’s okay baby.” Gerard soothed, pulling Frank up a little with him.  
“Hurts…”  
“Mmm.” Gerard said. “I know, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have let you sleep so long, you need a regular supply right now.”  
He bent down, and reached into the little storage unit they’d had under Frank’s bed for a while now, it’s contents originally just for Gerard, but over the past few days it had mostly been for Frank. The little glass tubes of blood really little more than mouthfuls, but to was enough to help get Frank used to it.  
More awake now, Frank shook his head as Gerard offered the tube to him.  
“Frank, please. I know you’re not used to the taste but you need it.”  
Again, Frank shook his head. “I’m fine with the taste now. But I don’t want that.”  
Gerard sighed, heavily, trying to remember if Mikey had been this difficult about blood when he’d turned.  
Somehow Gerard didn’t think he had been. 

Frank was curling in on himself slightly, but not like he was getting comfortable to fall asleep again, he still looked in pain, eyes closed tight.  
“If you want to stop hurting you-”  
“I want _you_.” Frank interrupted, loudly, a little harshly.  
Gerard blinked, taking that in.  
“You… Want…?”  
Frank moved closer, pressing himself against Gerard, face buried against Gerard’s chest.  
“I. Want. To feed… From- From-”  
Gerard said nothing, feeling slightly taken aback.  
He’d done it, once before. On the night when Frank had turned, obviously it was Gerard’s blood that had been fed to him, and Frank had fed, briefly from him again that same night, but…  
“Like you always feed from me. I wanna do that- I- I want-”  
Frank was moving up now, until his face buried against Gerard’s neck, nuzzling him gently, kissing him, then his new fangs grazed lightly against Gerard’s skin, pressed a little.  
Gerard pushed him back then, pressing back against his shoulders, holding him away.  
“Whoa, whoa, slow down there, pup.” Gerard said, laughing slightly, impressed by Frank’s forwardness, his willingness, his want.  
Frank looked at him, his eyes wide, waiting, waiting for instruction, even though his want was great.  
_I still obey my alpha._  
Gerard smiled at him. “Feeding like that isn’t as simple as it seems. There’s technique, a little skill involved. I will show you, I promise.”  
Frank nodded, slowly to show he was listening.  
“But… For now…”  
Gerard let go of Frank’s shoulders, who sat back, patient now he knew he was getting what he’d asked for.  
He watched as Gerard lifted his own wrist up to his mouth, closing his eyes as he bit into it, his nose scrunching as he did.  
He was gasping just a little as he took the wound from his mouth. It is not a natural instinct for a vampire, to give up blood like this.  
Frank leant forward slightly, just staring at the wound, the blood welling, starting to spread and snake further down Gerard’s arm, around the back of the wrist, threatening to spill onto the sheets.  
Gerard closed his eyes and gasped, “Quickly.”  
Then Frank leant down, one hand grabbing Gerard’s hand, the other circling his arm. He ventured carefully first, letting his tongue come out, lick around the wound, as if cleaning it. Then lapping, gently at the wound.  
Gerard winced, “Fuck, can tell the wolf’s still in you, Frankie…”  
Frank raised his head, self consciously. “Am- Am I doing something… Wrong?”  
Gerard opened his eyes.  
And smiled.  
“Not exactly. But vampires don’t so much lick as, um.” He paused, looking away briefly, and laughed. “Suck.” He concluded finally. 

Gerard didn’t hurry him, but now, Frank tried again, leaning down once more. He let his lips part, his mouth cover the wound, and, very, very gently sucked.  
It took a few more seconds for the full effect to hit him, but when it did, he found himself gripping at Gerard’s arm even tighter.  
This was so much better than downing cooled blood from a tube.  
Not just because it was coming from the source, but because it was coming from Gerard. 

Gerard’s head had tipped back, his eyes closed.  
He was panting, softly.  
It didn’t hurt. Frank wasn’t using his fangs, so there was no sting, just a slight tugging. But the pleasure of intimacy overwhelmed that entirely, made it pale in comparison. 

Gerard moved, an arm wrapped around Frank to guide him carefully down, so they could lay, facing one another, Gerard pulled him close, his eyes just barely open, watching Frank, still latched carefully on to his wrist. He was getting a little less timid, sucking a little harder.  
Gerard’s eyes fell closed, his panting picking up speed and volume slightly, his hand reaching up into Frank’s hair, running through it, grabbing at it, but not to try and pull him away.  
Frank pressed himself even closer to Gerard, their bare legs tangling up with one another beneath the covers.  
Gerard became suddenly aware that not only was Frank pressing against him, he was also rubbing against him. The smallest hip movements, but still noticeable.  
Gerard trailed his hand down Frank back, briefly squeezed his ass, then pushed him even closer, so their crotches rubbed, unmistakably, against each other.  
They moved against each other, getting noticeably hard, fast.  
Abruptly, Frank detached himself from Gerard’s wrist, and kissed him, suddenly, full on the lips, his tongue pushing forcefully into Gerard’s mouth. His lips wet and warm and sticky with blood, his tongue tasting strongly of it, making Gerard want to suck on it. They could both feel the blood smearing their mouths.  
Gerard rolled onto his back, pulling Frank on top of him.  
Both were frantic, needy, panting heavily into each others mouths, moaning into kisses. Gerard’s hands pushed back into Frank’s hair, holding him close, not wanting to stop kissing, their hips moving together rapidly.  
And then, while not allowing his lips to part from Gerard’s, Frank reached down, sitting up to push down Gerard’s shorts, exposing his cock, then sitting up again to yank down his own, made difficult due to his straddled position, but still enough to expose his ass, making his intentions more than clear.  
In their longest pause to kissing since they started, Gerard gasped out the question, “Are you sure? I- If you slow down, I can- I can make sure you’re ready. I don’t want to hurt you.”  
Frank shook his head, then kissed Gerard again, before moving himself back.  
Both moaned deeply as Frank allowed himself to slowly sink down onto Gerard.  
Now, and only now did Frank allow a proper break from their kisses, he sat up, allowing Gerard ever deeper into him.  
Gerard opened his eyes, and took in his lover, watched the closed eyes, the tipped back head, the hair stuck to his face and neck.  
The blood smeared his mouth and chin and ran in thin trails down beneath his shirt. His reddened lips slightly parted, once again showing off those beautiful new fangs.  
This sex was borne out of want and desire more than affection, and as such was frenzied, fast, and just a little painful. Gerard came quick, Frank’s movements above him more than taking care of that. Frank moved off him and laid on his back, Gerard’s hand taking care of his orgasm for him.  
“You are so fucking sexy.” Gerard said, as Frank curled back against him.  
Frank shook his head. “You are.”  
But before they could have further arguments on this, Frank had fallen asleep once more.  
He was snoring again. 

///

A sharp rapping at the door woke Gerard from his light sleep. Startled him, he hadn’t even realised he’d fallen asleep. Forcing his eyes into focus, he instinctively checked on Frank.  
He was still sleeping. There seemed little change in him since he’d last been awake. 

The knocking continued, and, reluctantly, Gerard sat up, carefully untangling himself from Frank.  
He paused, at the end of the bed, looking over him again, so badly wanting to ignore whoever was at the door. 

“Frank?”  
He knew the voice that was calling through the door immediately.  
Ray, one of Frank’s pack.  
And, though he knew it best to get this over with, this made Gerard hesitate more.  
_Just make sure he doesn’t see Frank. Not yet… They can’t. They can’t know yet._

Finally he hurried, opening the door.  
He kept his hand on the door though, blocking any potential entrance into Frank’s apartment.  
Gerard smiled, honestly, if a little too sweetly at Ray.  
In return Ray blinked at him a couple of times, in surprise. Then rolled his eyes briefly, and laughed.  
“Hi, Gerard. This is a surprise.”  
Gerard’s turn to laugh, they both knew full well it was no surprise to find Gerard in Frank’s apartment.  
“I’d say the surprise is to see you, Ray.” He paused, looking down at himself, realising he was standing there quite barely dressed, his hand went up to his hair, tugging at the back of it a little.  
“As you can see, I… Um. We weren’t expecting company.”  
Ray smirked. “You forget wolves aren’t exactly strangers to seeing each other naked. We don’t tend to be fazed just because someone forgot to put pants on.”  
An odd, unwelcome feeling of jealousy spiked in Gerard then. The thought, the certain knowledge that the other wolves had seen Frank naked did not sit well with him. Even though he knew none of them looked at Frank like that. It just came with the territory of being a werewolf, it was natural.  
He assumed this jealousy had something to do with some kind of deep seated possessive alpha trait. One of the few things he did not enjoy about it.  
Also… He knew that one of the wolves very much did harbour some feelings for Frank. The wolf who had made him a wolf had never quite let go of his desire to be with Frank.  
The atmosphere was never exactly easy when Gerard and this wolf were in the same room together, though both tried, for Frank’s sake.  
Trying his best to ignore these distracting thoughts, Gerard smiled, a little more weakly and asked,  
“So, um… To what do we… Owe this visit?”  
Gerard paused, briefly concerned. “Everyone in the pack is alright? Right?”  
He knew Frank would feel guilty if he’d been absent when something big happened in the pack, if someone was hurt, missing.  
And, of course, Gerard would feel equally guilty, knowing he was the reason Frank hadn’t been there.  
Ray nodded. “The pack is fine…” He trailed off, his eyes not quite meeting Gerard.  
Gerard knew Ray was stalling. Something was wrong, and a million scenario’s raced through his mind.  
“What’s happened?” Gerard asked, his voice urging, very gently.  
Ray sighed. “That’s… Kinda what I came here to find out.” 

Fear crept through Gerard then.  
Along with a feeling of stupidity.  
Of course the wolves would know _something_ had happened to Frank. All the wolves in a pack share a lo-fi connection, they would’ve sensed… Something.  
Then it hit him fully.  
Frank had died, if only temporarily, only as part of the transformation. The wolves would’ve sensed that right away.  
(Images of a night out with the wolves, a hunt gone badly, one of the pack killed. Frank had stopped running, still in wolf form, and howled pitifully, sensing what had happened even though the fallen wolf was still nowhere in sight.)  
The wolves thought Frank was-  
“He’s not dead!” Gerard blurted, his mind racing too much to fully consider his words before they left his mouth.  
Ray blinked at him, taken aback, but, slowly his expression softened.  
“Gerard, would you please let me in the door? This isn’t really a discussion I want to have in a doorway anymore.”  
Knowing that if Ray came in, he’d know, he’d surely know what had happened, and what then? What then, he didn’t know. All he knew was he had to protect Frank. Even if it was from his own pack.  
Gerard shook his head, not looking at Ray now, starting to try and close the door.  
Ray grabbed hold of the door too. They both knew that between a vampire and a wolf in their human form, a vampire was stronger, but Ray also knew that Gerard would not want to hurt him, and that kept Gerard from using his full strength against him.  
Still, he kept his head down, refusing to look at Ray.  
“Gerard.” Ray said, softly. “Please, let me in.”  
Finally, Gerard looked up, smiled, just slightly, and nodded. 

Ray sat on the couch, looking immediately comfortable in Frank’s apartment, just like he always did. There was such an… Easiness to the werewolves. So relaxed around each other.  
Gerard envied that sometimes, wished the vampires could adopt some small part of it.  
Gerard did not sit down, instead he stood, a little awkwardly, just about in front of Ray.  
His hand was back in his hair, tugging at the knots that had formed and been allowed to grow after two days in bed.  
Ray sat forward slightly, and Gerard could feel his gaze.  
“Gerard. Tell me what happened on Halloween.”  
Gerard fidgeted, scuffing a bare toe at the rug on the floor.  
“It… It was Frank’s birthday.” Gerard said, looking up, briefly, smiling.  
“You know I know that, Gerard. And you know the wolves were not happy to not get to see Frank on the night of his birthday. You know we have traditions.”  
Gerard nodded, it was part of why Gerard had tried to convince Frank to choose another night.  
“You… You all got to see him during the day, though.” Gerard said, quietly.  
“Yes. We did. And it was noticeable then that Frank was… Jittery.”  
Gerard shrugged, even though he knew, he knew how anxious Frank had been, scared, even though he was sure of what he wanted.  
“It was his birthday, and Halloween, you know he gets excited about Halloween.”  
“It wasn’t just excitement, Gerard. He was nervous.”  
Gerard had no reasonable answer to that.  
Still, as his only defence against his own, currently roiling nerves, Gerard tried for a small smirk.  
“I think he was nervous about his wolf acting out when we were together… He mentioned something about being worried about going into heat again. Frank gets really embarrassed about it, though, honestly, I don’t see why, I mean, it really makes the sex even more-”  
“Gerard.” Ray interrupted, his voice sounding both bored and a little tired.  
“Sorry.” Gerard mumbled. 

A pause, then Ray sighed. “So, you’re saying, basically, that all that happened on Frank’s birthday was the two of you had sex?”  
A nod from Gerard.  
“And the reason we haven’t seen Frank for two days since?”  
Gerard shrugged. “I… Haven’t gotten around to leaving, so we’ve just…” Another shrug.  
To all this, Ray nodded.  
“Okay, I can’t say that I’m exactly surprised by what you’re telling me.”  
For a second, Gerard genuinely thought he’d got away with it.  
“But, what is surprising… Is that you’d lie to me, Gerard. Not even that. The fact that you’d lie to me, about Frank.”  
Gerard looked up, suddenly, eyes wide, startled.  
“Gerard. You understand the link between pack members, yes? You understand that we can sense certain things.”  
Gerard nodded, his mind racing, trying to think of how to explain away what he knew was coming.  
“Gerard, we- We all felt it, just like we always do. We all felt it when…”  
He paused, head bowed briefly, Gerard watched as he closed his eyes, swallowed hard.  
“When Frank…”  
“He isn’t dead.” Gerard repeated, again, quietly this time.  
“Gerard.” Ray said, softly, his voice hushed, possibly to try and keep Gerard from getting upset. “I understand if you… Are finding it hard, unable to accept it. We’re all finding it difficult, and I know, with your bond, it must be- I can’t imagine. But, Gerard, please, don’t lie, not to me. Even if the truth is painful. I realise there’s…” Again, Ray paused. “I may be wrong in thinking that… Possibly. It was at your own hands?”  
Gerard was barely listening now, his mind back to that night now. And those awful, awful moments where he really had thought- He really thought he had lost Frank. That the change had been a failure, and it was all his own fault.  
He didn’t realise that Ray had stood, had placed his hands on Gerard’s shoulders. “I know it would have been an accident, Gerard. I don’t for one second think you would hurt him on purpose.”  
Gerard shook his head.  
“Some of the others though…” Ray continued, carefully. “Gerard, some of them thought you were beginning to push Frank too far, when you fed from him. They saw… They saw how many bite marks he had, and it worried them. They think… That’s why Frank was so nervous on his birthday. They think… You were… Forcing him.”  
Gerard stepped back then, and threw Ray’s hands off him.  
His eyes were flashing, dangerously, a slight glint of red showing, though he tried to suppress his anger as best he could.  
“I would never hurt Frank.” He hissed.  
Ray held his hands up, attempting to calm him. “Gerard, I know that. I told you I know that, I’m just telling you that-”  
“Zacky, right? It’s always fucking him! Saying I’m bad for Frank, hurting him, making him do things he doesn’t want. He thought I raped Frank! The night we first met, he- he thought I-”  
“You have to understand it was a very confusing time for Zacky. Gerard, none of us had known anything like this before, he was just scared for Frank.”  
“He should know by now, at least, that I would never do- I would never do anything Frank didn’t want, I’d-”  
“Gerard.” Ray said, his voice soft, reasonable once again. “Please, calm down, sit down. And let’s just… Talk over what happened. And, we can figure out what happens next.”  
Gerard frowned. “What do you mean? ‘Next’?”  
Ray sat down with a sigh. “We have to start being… Realistic. Accepting the truth. And. We wolves have certain… Traditions.”  
Gerard nearly snorted at that. Seemed werewolves had traditions for just about everything.  
Then, once again, it hit Gerard just what kind of traditions Ray was talking about.  
“Ray! I’ve told you! Frank is not dead.”  
Ray closed his eyes, shook his head.  
“And I’ve told you, we all felt his death. I’m afraid there’s no denying. We just… Gerard at least give us the closure of knowing what happened.”  
Gerard shook his head. “You’re not listening to me now, so why would you listen when I tell you what happened?”  
“Because I only want to know the truth. It’s all the pack want.” 

“The truth might be a little… Difficult.”  
Both Gerard and Ray looked up at the sound of another voice.  
Frank was standing just behind the couch. 

///

While Ray didn’t, seemingly couldn’t move or speak, or do anything except stare at Frank, Gerard hurried over to him, wrapping his arms around him.  
“You shouldn’t be out of bed.” Gerard chided, softly.  
“I’m fine.” Frank insisted.  
Gerard did not believe him, not least because he could already feel Frank slumping slightly against him.  
“Okay, we’re sitting down now.” Gerard said, already guiding him over to sit on the opposite end of the couch to Ray.  
Gerard sat back into the very corner of the couch, and Frank settled against him, part way onto his lap. He sighed, a little tiredly, mostly happily. Gerard kissed him gently on the cheek, then Frank pushed himself up briefly to kiss his lips. 

Ray was still staring. Not at the displays of affection, he was more than used to it from the two of them. Certainly not phased by the lack of clothing that was as true of Frank just as it was of Gerard, his hair equally tangled and wild looking.  
Frank looked over at Ray, a small blush creeping on his cheeks, and he smiled, close lipped.  
And he was careful when he spoke. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost, Ray.”  
Ray blinked a few times, as if he expected Frank to disappear, scared that he would.  
“We… Frank. We all… We all felt you die.” Ray eventually managed to say. 

To this Frank lowered his head, feeling guilty that he hadn’t realised, hadn’t thought about the fact the pack would sense that.  
He looked up at Gerard, who nodded.  
“I guess, um… Now’s probably a good time to start explaining.”  
Then, using one finger, Frank pushed his lip up, just enough to show off one of his fangs.  
Ray returned to his state of frozen silence. 

///

Slowly, the three talked over what had happened, why they hadn’t told anyone beforehand, and what it all meant.  
It was explained that while Frank had been successfully turned, there was very much part of him that was still wolf.  
“We really don’t have all the answers yet.” Gerard said, apologetically. “We’re still figuring a lot out.”  
Ray was watching Frank, who had curled even closer against Gerard, was nuzzling at his neck. Gerard didn’t need to watch him, he knew what he was doing. He felt Frank’s fangs very slightly grazing at his skin, but not trying to puncture it.  
Gerard couldn’t help but smile, considering how this was almost like the behaviour of a baby, wanting feeding. Though, of course this was something much less innocent than the want of a child.  
“I’m guessing the… Need for blood isn’t exactly up for questioning.” Ray said, still watching Frank. Clearly Ray had finally found something he wasn’t so comfortable witnessing.  
Sensing this, Gerard carefully pushed Frank back, away from his neck.  
Frank looked up at him, eyes a little wide, asking.  
Then, turning around to address Ray, he said. “The blood is not a question. I need it, just like any other vampire.”  
“More so at the moment, while he builds his strength.” Gerard explained further.  
Ray nodded. “You need it now, don’t you?”  
Frank sank back against Gerard, closed his eyes, looking suddenly tired. He nodded in answer.  
Gerard started to lift Frank up, so he could get up off the couch. “I’ll go get the supply.”  
Frank shook his head, grabbed at Gerard’s hand, and ran his fingers over Gerard’s wrist.  
Gerard bent down, kissed Frank’s forehead and whispered, “Not in front of Ray.”  
Then Gerard slipped out from under Frank and made sure he laid back comfortably.

Ray followed Gerard into the kitchen, where a second supply of blood was kept.  
“He’s been feeding from you then?” Ray asked.  
Gerard shrugged. “Only a few times. I mean… That’s. How I turned him. And…”  
“Does it effect you? When he feeds from you?”  
Again, Gerard shrugged. “I guess, I mean, of course it’s, for lack of a better word, draining. But…” He smiled. “It’s not like we don’t have a decent supply here. Keeps us both going, for now.”  
Ray leant back against the counter, crossed his arms, frowning. “It won’t last for ever though, right?”  
Now Gerard also frowned. “Well, no, not forever but…”  
“So he’ll eventually have to hunt, people, right?”  
Gerard looked up at Ray, and nodded, slowly. “It’s part of being a vampire, Ray. It’s not a pretty side of it.” Then he smiled, very slightly. “But it sure can be a romantic side of it.”  
Ray rolled his eyes up to the ceiling. “Just… Don’t be surprised if Frank doesn’t take to that so easily.”  
Gerard tutted. “Right, because werewolves are such docile creatures, never hurt a living thing, huh?”  
“Gerard…”  
“Ray, I promise, whatever is up ahead, I’m gonna be there to help him through it. Because I love him, because I’m his alpha and” He pointed out the kitchen door, through to the living room. “Because I’m the one who turned him into something that has never existed before.” 

/// 

Ray left shortly after, trying not to be too obvious about watching as Frank sipped at the cup Gerard had given him.

As a final parting, Ray bent down, where Frank was still sat on the couch, and hugged him, warmly.  
“I want you to know, it doesn’t matter that you’re not… All werewolf anymore. You’re still part of our pack. You always will be.”  
Frank hugged him back, tightly, squeezing.  
When Gerard came back from showing Ray out, Frank held out his arms to him.  
They went back to the bedroom again, and curled up once more together.


	2. Pure and Blood stained

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Frank is slowly settling in to this new life, even though many things are still a surprise to himself, and Gerard.
> 
> However, things take a very serious turn when Frank finally tries hunting for himself.

It felt like they’d been cooped up in the apartment for months, and the wolf that still resided in Frank demanded open space, fresh air. And so they found themselves out in a park they’d frequented many times. At times just the two of them, and others with the whole pack.   
It was late, the park deserted, and it felt peaceful.  
Frank was laid out on his back, legs stretched out and arms folded behind his head, eyes closed. The air was just slightly cool.  
That old, welcome feeling of being free, slightly feral tingled through him. Here, now, Frank felt more wolf than he had since he’d been turned.   
Gerard sat beside him, looking down at him, very, very gently playing with his hair. 

Frank opened his eyes, and found his gaze gravitating first to Gerard, then, further, up to the moon.   
It was then that his smile faltered, an iciness gripping him.  
Gerard frowned at him, then followed his gaze.   
The moon was just over half full, the sky was clear, giving them a perfect view of it.   
“What’s wrong?” Gerard asked.   
Frank sat up, staring at the ground. His breathing was suddenly coming short.   
Again, Gerard glanced up at the sky, noting the moon once again, but more confused than ever.   
“Frank… The moon’s not full, you don’t have to worry-”  
“That’s exactly it!” Frank said, eyes still fixed down. “It’s not a full moon, won’t be for a while, but this isn’t the first cycle since- since-” He looked up now, his eyes wide, pleading, pleading with Gerard to understand what was wrong.   
Gerard shifted, just slightly, sitting up a little straighter. He gently took Frank’s hand. “It’s not the first moon cycle since you were turned.”   
Frank shook his head.   
“There’s already been a full moon.”   
Frank nodded.   
“And you didn’t change.”   
Again, Frank nodded, and bit his lip, not mindful of his new fangs. He was shaking, very slightly.   
Gerard reached out, and rubbed Frank’s shoulders, soothingly. “Don’t panic, alright? You know the wolf is still there, you’ve heard him, I’ve heard him. You know you haven’t lost him.”   
Frank was swallowing hard, and now he shook his head. “What- What if he’s still there, but I can’t- Change. What if I’ve just… Trapped him.”   
“Frank. I’m sure that’s not-”  
“I didn’t change!” Frank snapped. “I always change on the full moon, because he makes me, he doesn’t give me a choice.”  
Gerard stroked at Frank’s hair, still trying to calm him down. “The last full moon would’ve been soon after I turned you, right? Frank, you and the wolf would’ve both still been very, very vulnerable and weak at that point. Maybe he didn’t have the strength to force it, or maybe he knew you couldn’t take it, not along with anything else.”   
Frank’s head was bowed, his eyes closed.   
“I didn’t… I didn’t think I’d care so much. I didn’t think I’d… Be so sad.”   
Gerard leant close, and, gently, kissed Frank’s cheek, then his lips. “Why don’t you try? You’ve changed at will before. If you really want to know…”

Frank didn’t want to, he didn’t want to face that possible reality, but, eventually, he recognised he wouldn’t be able to let the idea go until he at least tried. 

Although he was capable, and mostly comfortable with going through the change wherever, this time, with so much seemingly at stake, Frank asked if they could go home for it.  
As soon as they got back, he headed to his room.   
“Do you want me with you?” Gerard asked. Frank shook his head.  
“You know I’m not safe to be around when I go through the change.” Frank said, quietly.   
Gerard nodded, and forced himself to stay outside the room, as he heard the lock click on the other side. 

Frank sat down on the end of the bed. Head down, eyes closed.  
“You in there?” He asked, quietly.   
The wolf growled softly in response, and Frank couldn’t help smiling.   
“Okay, good.” 

Taking his time, Frank undressed, and methodically, still slowly, put his clothes away. Then he crawled back on the bed. And sat, closing his eyes. He focused on the wolf, hearing it, inviting it out, opening himself up to it.   
Whether the change was forced or voluntary, it was always scary, but Frank tried not to focus on that, instead keeping his attention on the wolf, letting it know it was wanted.   
And then, he felt the ripple through his skin, and he couldn’t help but smile a little. Then the shaking started, subtle at first, then slowly heavier. He laid back, trying to concentrate on remaining calm, it hurt a lot less if he stayed calm, didn’t tense up. His hands badly wanted to clench, but he managed to stop them.   
The cracking started then, bones snapping and reshaping, he tried not to cry out. A prickling all over his skin coupled with that, so his insides and out all felt like it was on fire with pain.   
He closed his eyes and gave over, fully, to the wolf, letting his conscious mind slip, allowing the wolf to come to the forefront. 

It was hours later, and Frank woke, still on the bed, but now Gerard was with him, cradling Frank’s head in his lap.   
“Welcome back.” Gerard said, softly.   
Frank just smiled at him. Slowly becoming aware of the wolf’s memories of the past few hours. Jumping up on Gerard, licking his face, being told off, as always. The smiles and the tight hugs Gerard had given the wolf.   
Sure, the wolf was a pain in the ass, but Frank still loved it, in his own way. And Gerard certainly did too.

///

Gerard hissed, sharply with pain, pulling his arm back out of reflex.   
Frank bowed his head and slumped back again.  
“It’s fucking hopeless.” Frank sighed. “I don’t understand what you’re telling me.” 

Gerard had decided it was best to start trying to teach Frank how too feed, by himself, rather than relying on Gerard to do the more difficult part for him. The biting, puncturing part especially. While Frank had now fed from Gerard a number of times, it had always been with Gerard doing this particular part for him.   
They’d settled on the floor in the living room, towels beneath them on the floor, a preventative measure in case things got messier than usual.   
Things had not been going well so far. 

Gerard frowned down at his arm, the various grazes and very slight puncture marks which started at his wrist and made a steady trail up until it reached the inside of his elbow. Every mark a failed attempt by Frank to feed from him. Gerard’s nose scrunched, trying to figure out what it was that Frank was finding so difficult.   
He leant back against the couch. “Alright. What don’t you understand?” His voice was still just as steady, as calm as it had been when they’d first started. 

Frank grimaced, the huffed, agitated. “All of it.” He grumbled.   
Gerard rolled his eyes, then leant forward, kissing Frank’s cheek.   
“Okay. Let’s start from the beginning then.”   
“Don’t wanna.”   
This time Gerard laughed. “Stop sulking.”  
“Easy for you to say!” Frank protested. “I bet you picked this shit up easy.”   
Gerard shrugged. “As it happened, I did.”   
“See!”   
“But…” Gerard leant it, conspiratorially. “Don’t tell him I told you this… But Mikey took ages to get it right too.”   
Frank looked up at him, wide eyed, disbelieving.   
That didn’t seem possible. Mikey was so…   
A slightly uncomfortable thought occurred to Frank then, and he looked away.  
“Did. Um… Did Mikey practice on you?”   
To this Gerard shrugged, nodded. Frank blushed, feeling oddly embarrassed by this information. 

The silence confused Gerard for a second, as did the blush on Frank’s cheeks.  
Then he laughed, again.   
“Frank. Just because us two make feeding into a… Very intimate thing, doesn’t mean it’s the same for everyone in every situation. Especially when it comes to teaching new vampires.”  
He put his arm around Frank, and pulled him close. “So don’t go thinking me and my brother were into any weird shit, okay? That’s just gross.” He laughed again, and kissed Frank’s neck.   
That, finally, made Frank crack a smile.   
Then he sighed. “Alright. Run me though this again.” 

There were a few more failed attempts and then, finally, Frank threw himself to the floor, childlike, refusing to try again.   
“I can’t do it!” He protested. “I’m doomed to be a vampire that can’t hunt for him fucking self!” 

By now even Gerard was getting a little frustrated, though he did his very best to not to show it.   
A hand dragged back through his hair. His eyes closed, he breathed out, slowly.   
“Frank. Please. Being defeatist like that is only going to make this harder.”   
“It can’t get any harder Gee! I can’t do this!”   
Finally, Gerard lost his temper, just a little, and kicked Frank in the side, causing the young vampire to let out a noise of surprise and sit back up suddenly.   
“Stop that, right now!” Gerard told him, firmly. “And stop with this bullshit about never feeding for yourself. We’ve just got to figure out what it is that’s proving to be such a barrier and-”   
“All of it!” Frank snapped. “You say not to pierce the skin too fast, but also not to go too slow. You talk about letting my senses guide me about where to bite, but my senses don’t tell me anything like that. You tell me not to bite too deep, but I don’t know what too deep is! Gerard. I don’t have all the instincts you do! Face it, this part of vampirism didn’t transfer properly into me, I’m defective at the most crucial part of vampire life.”   
Gerard frowned, thinking this all through.   
“Maybe I’ve been going about this the wrong way.” He muttered, partly to himself.   
Frank groaned, and threw himself back again.   
“No, listen to me. I started by trying to show you how to bite on the wrist, the arm, because generally new vampires feel safer starting there, like they have more control. But, maybe, maybe because your instincts, your senses still need developing… It would be more sensible to start… Someplace else. Someplace… Your instincts wouldn’t have to work so hard.” 

Once again, Frank sat up, curious now. And maybe just a little bit hopeful.   
“Come here.” Gerard said, his voice soft, careful. He held out his hand and guided Frank close.   
Gerard leant back against the couch again, and let Frank settle beside him. His hand reached up into Frank’s hair, and guided him, again, this time to his neck. Gerard tipped his head back, very slightly, the offering clear.   
Frank breathed out, slowly, trying to keep steady, the breath settling against Gerard’s neck, making him close his eyes. “I’m not- I’m not sure about this Gee.” Frank said, quietly.   
“Does it feel more… Right?” Gerard asked, his voice also hushed.   
Frank swallowed hard, his tongue tracing over his lips, gently testing his fangs, as if in reminder that they were there, and what they were for.   
“I want it.” Frank said, by way of reply. He leant in closer, and kissed the skin, then whimpered. “Gee. I’m a little scared… I’m scared by-”  
“How much you want it?” Gerard interrupted, a small smile playing on his mouth.   
Frank nodded, his lips still pressed against Gerard’s skin as he did.   
“Then I was right. Just listen to me, carefully, and this is going to go so smoothly.”   
Again, Frank nodded, feeling Gerard’s hand once again in his hair, at the back of his head, playing very, very gently.   
Gerard was breathing slowly, steadily, concentrating on keeping himself calm, knowing that any spikes in emotion would be all the more obvious with Frank feeding from where he was.   
“Okay, when you’re ready, open your mouth against my skin.”   
Frank grabbed at Gerard’s spare hand, and slowly did this.  
“Good, now let your fangs rest against the skin.”   
Briefly, Frank pulled back. “How do I know it’s the right place? How do I know I won’t-”  
Without opening his eyes, Gerard leant close, and kissed his cheek. “You were in a perfect spot, let your instincts kick in. Trust them.”   
Frank nodded, and allowed himself to be guided back down again, this time letting his fangs be exposed, resting against the skin. This, of course, he’d done before, in the times when he’d been too tired, too needy to actually ask for blood, this was his code to Gerard, telling him what he needed. It felt like so much more now, now he knew he was actually going to do this.   
“Now, let the tips pierce the skin, and then slide the fangs deeper. You’ll know when to stop.”   
Frank hesitated, testing his fangs against Gerard’s skin a few times. Before, finally, working up the courage, and letting his fangs push a little harder, breaking the skin, feeling it give way under the pressure, allowing his fangs to slide in, and causing a well of blood to, slowly at first, fill his mouth.   
Frank gripped Gerard’s hand tighter, and pressed closer against him, practically crawling up onto his lap. His face nuzzled against him, fangs going a little deeper, he whined, softly.   
And he heard Gerard’s soft, hushed gasps and small little moans. His hand was tight in Frank’s hair.  
Gerard suddenly got his hand free of Frank’s, and pulled him up, onto his lap fully now, careful not to break Frank away from his feeding, then he took Frank’s hand again, holding tight, bringing it up to his mouth to kiss.  
Frank didn’t realise he was moving against Gerard until he noticed the way Gerard was equally shifting beneath him. He shouldn’t have been surprised, feeding always seemed to do this to them, it was always sexual in some way, but, he’d assumed this time, this first time for him would just be about learning. It was obvious, now, that this wasn’t the case. They were both hard, and both moving against one another. And yet, neither tried to undress the other.  
Gerard’s head was tipped back even more though, allowing even better, easier access for Frank, he didn’t dare let his fangs go any deeper, though the urge was there, he sucked at the blood already flowing, making it come through a little faster.   
And then, so suddenly he found it a little shocking, Frank found himself having to fight the urge to bite down more even harder. His hands gripped at Gerard’s shirt, and he moaned, muffled against Gerard’s skin.   
He felt himself being pulled back, a hand at his cheek guiding his fangs out carefully. He fell forward, forehead resting against Gerard’s shoulder, his open mouth emitting moans, blood steadily dripping from his fangs and lips, vaguely aware of Gerard’s hand at his crotch, helping him get to the end of his orgasm.

He slumped, and Gerard fell slightly with him.  
Gerard laughed, softly. “Not bad for your first try, huh?”   
Frank just allowed himself to roll out of Gerard’s arms, onto his back on the floor again. He stared up at the ceiling, slowly licking his lips. Wiping at his mouth and chin until they were completely free of blood. 

///

They hadn’t been back to the vampires home since Frank had turned, but, of course, news of his transformation had got to them.   
Gerard knew the clan was unhappy about what had happened, and some were worse when they realised Frank wasn’t even fully vampire.   
As Mikey had pointed out, not just on that first night, but on visits after also, Frank still had the scent of a wolf, there was no way that would go down well. 

It had been reported back, also by Mikey, that, though Frank was now part vampire, and therefore they had to accept him, to some level, the couple should not expect for him to be welcomed as one of their own. 

“You think they’re pissed because I did it without telling anyone?” Gerard asked Mikey, a playful grin on his lips.   
“Again, you mean?” Mikey said, dryly, raising an eyebrow. Making the point, once again, that Frank wasn’t the first vampire Gerard had created. It reminded Gerard that things were potentially tough for Mikey back in the clan. He wasn’t one of the clan leaders vampires, and only there because of Gerard, he had no other ties, or rights to be there without Gerard.   
“They’re being alright to you, aren’t they?” Gerard asked, placing his hand on Mikey’s shoulder.   
Mikey nodded, shrugged. “They’re fine, some actually feel sorry for me, you know.” He paused, a wry smile playing on his lips, “Having such a disappointing troublemaker for a brother and all.”   
Gerard rolled his eyes. “So long as they’re not giving you shit, I don’t care what they say, or think of me.”   
“That much, you’ve made more than obvious.” Mikey sighed.   
He paused, fiddling distractedly, before adding. “There’s… Murmurs of… Concern though.”  
Gerard frowned. “About what?”   
Mikey rolled his eyes. “About what… Gee. Frank is now the second vampire you’ve turned, no one else in the clan has turned even one vampire, let alone two. Some of them think… Maybe you-”  
“They think I’m looking to create a new clan?” Gerard had to hold back a laugh. “Mikes! I turned you years ago.”  
“Time doesn’t matter to vampires, you know that.”   
Gerard shook his head. “Whatever anyone is thinking, it’s fucking nonsense. They only have to look at who it is I’ve turned to realise… To realise the last thing on my mind is starting a clan. You, I turned because you asked me, and I was too new and scared to ask for help. Frank, I- I had no choice, the other vampires never would have agreed! No one would have done it for me, and, honestly, I wouldn’t trust anyone else with him, even if they’d agreed.”   
“I know, I know all this, Gee. I just- Thought you should know.”

Another, just slightly uneasy silence passed, and it was Mikey who spoke once again.   
“How’s Frank finding it all?”  
Gerard smiled, nodded. “Taking to it all pretty well. It’s weird when we come across something that’s different to other vampires, but, he’s adjusting.”  
“Has he hunted yet?”   
Gerard shook his head. “I’m… Working him up to that.”   
“Don’t leave it too long, Gee.” Mikey said, leaning in slightly as he dropped his voice, “You can’t keep letting him feed from you forever.”

///

Frank’s heart was pounding, this felt so wrong. He didn’t want to do this, not like this.   
All the way to the bar, Frank had tried to convince Gerard that he’d rather do this some other way.   
“Can’t I just… Jump some creep in an alleyway?”   
Gerard smiled, wryly. “You could, if you want to get a reputation as a gutter vamp.”   
Frank rolled his eyes. “The other vampires have a enough nicknames for me anyway, what’s one more to add to the list?”   
Gerard sighed, and abruptly stopped walking. He grabbed Frank by the arm, turned him around so they were facing one another.  
“Frank, if you don’t feel ready to hunt, I understand that.”  
“I’m ready!” Frank insisted. “I just-”  
“But this is the way I hunt. It’s the way Mikey hunts, the way my whole clan hunts.” Gerard reached out his hand, stroking gently, lovingly over Frank’s cheek. Once again he got that small thrill as he felt the faint warmth to Frank’s skin.  
“And you are part of our clan now.”  
Frank nodded, looking no less nervous.   
Gerard kissed him, softly. “I’m going to be right there, the whole time, I promise.”   
Frank nodded, then huffed, quietly. “I just…” He sighed. “Gee. It… It kinda feels like… Cheating.” He blushed, hoping Gerard couldn’t see.   
Gerard wrapped his arms around Frank’s shoulders, and pulled him in close. “It’s not cheating, I promise you that too.” 

Gerard was true to his word, and kept constantly close by, watching Frank’s progress carefully.   
He didn’t even have to actively seek anyone out. Frank had been up at the bar for no longer than around ten minutes before a girl sidled up next to him, ‘accidentally’ bumping her hip against Frank.  
Gerard watched, a flare of jealousy rising as the girl leaned in to hear whatever Frank was saying to her, saw her place her hand on Frank’s arm. Her fingers ran slightly up and down his exposed forearm, and then they were clearly talking tattoos. She removed her hand long enough to start tugging at her waistband, before blushing bright red and covering her mouth with her hand. 

“Oops.” The girl said, giggling slightly. “I got carried away there with all that talk, afraid I can’t show you my one. It’s a little, ummm… Tricky to get to.”   
Frank smiled, pleased with himself that he was finding this easier than he was expecting. He knew Gerard was watching, and that made him feel so much surer of himself.   
“It’s okay, I got a few that are even harder to show off.” His smile turned into a grin.  
The girls eyes raked over him, taking in the tattoos she could see, and exhaling deeply as she considered ones she couldn’t.   
“I bet you’re pretty, um, well covered?”   
Frank shrugged, sipped his drink and nodded. “That’s a way of putting it.”   
“I’d… Love to see them… You know, sometime.” She glanced away, suddenly seeming a little nervous, maybe embarrassed.   
Frank leaned in. “I’d love to show you.”  
And, just like that, as if they both knew it was going to happen, they kissed, softly, very carefully first, then again, quickly deeper. 

They were outside shortly after, still kissing, but more heatedly now.   
“I- I don’t usually do stuff like this.” The girl stammered as they paused for air.   
“It’s a first for me too.” Frank answered, honestly.   
Now they’d taken this further step, Frank felt nervous once again. And also eager, he felt.. Almost electric.   
He sensed as Gerard stepped outside too, could feel him watching. He felt like their connection was almost stronger than it had ever been, like he could see Gerard without having to physically look, knowing the vampire was letting himself fade into the shadows, staying out of sight. He felt the intensity kick up a notch with the knowledge that Gerard was there.

He pushed the girl up against the wall, hands pinning her hands back against the wall, she gasped into his mouth.   
Gerard had told him that if he was careful, he could bite his victim a few times, and feed a little before they realised what he was doing, so he could carry on kissing without drawing suspicion. 

_“Of course.” Gerard had said, above him, thrusting deep and steadily into him, Frank’s eyes tight closed as he gripped at Gerard’s hair. “Once you get as good as me, you can feed from them completely without them ever knowing what you’re doing. You can even make their dying breath a gasp of pure ecstasy.”  
Frank had pulled him down then, to his neck, the asking obvious. He’d cried out, so happily as Gerard bit him. He was still so pleased he could enjoy being bitten, just like he had before._

These thoughts, the knowledge that blood was near, that Gerard was so near also, made Frank’s head nearly spin with want. Want of blood, and, surprising himself, sexual want.   
He pressed close to the girl, and she gasped, then chuckled. “Oh. Someone’s eager.”   
Her arms looped around his back, then snaked down to his ass, squeezing very slightly.   
Then, his head buzzing, buzzing, Frank lowered his mouth to her neck, kissing softly at first, making the girl sigh, then kissing deeper, sucking softly.   
The girl gasped. “Gonna give me a hickey, boy. Not that I mind…”   
You have no idea… Frank thought, dryly.   
He parted his lips, testing his fangs against the skin, though remembering Gerard’s advice not to do that for too long, that it would draw suspicion quicker than anything else.   
Then, with the careful force, just like Gerard had taught him, he pierced the skin. It took a moment for the blood to come, but when it did, Frank moaned, immediately overwhelmed by it.  
It was nothing, nothing like feeding from Gerard. But they’d purposefully made sure Frank hadn’t feed since the morning, so he would feel the full effect tonight.   
It made him feel… Wild. Almost feral. Even more so than when he ran as a wolf.   
The girl was writhing slightly, but not as if she wanted him off. One arm wrapped around his waist, pulling him close, while her other hand was caught up in his hair.   
“Tha- How’d you learn to kiss like that? Holy- Fuck.”   
Frank lifted his head, careful to lick his lips free of any remnants of blood. He kissed her again.   
“My boyfriend taught me.” He answered, honestly.  
Now the girl tensed. “You’re-”  
“Boyfriend, yeah. Don’t worry, he’s totally okay with this kind of thing.”   
“So you’re like… Uh. Bisexual, right? You don’t think I’m-”  
Frank lent down, licked at some blood starting to run down the girls collarbone, she shivered, not in the least suspecting that she was bleeding.   
Frank’s wandered his hand up her torso, up to her chest, until he carefully cupped her breast. Again, she gasped. He leant close and whispered in her ear, “Don’t worry, I’m very aware you’re a girl.” 

As he bent again, fed once more, Frank started to feel himself loosing his head. He’d been overwhelmed before, now he felt like he was almost drowning with want, desire. He wanted the blood, was greedy for it, that much was obvious, that much was expected.  
He hadn’t expected the other want, he hadn’t expected it to be so hard to ignore.   
He sucked a little harder, earning himself a soft flinch from the girl.   
“Gentle.” She gasped. “Don’t be so fierce baby.”  
Frank could barely hear her, his head was pounding, in a good, but intense way. His wolf was awake, howling, wanting, wanting.  
He was hard, had been for a while, the girl grinding against him making it almost painful to ignore. He hadn’t felt a girl for so long, hadn’t wanted to, had no need to consider it, he was devoted to Gerard so he never considered touching or being with anyone else. But this… Gerard had said this wasn’t cheating, so it must be okay. He must know that something… Happens when you feed. You can’t ignore it.   
He was undoing his belt while his hand gently squeezed the girls breast, before pushing her top up, finding no bra beneath, he squeezed slightly harder.   
The girls hand covered his own. “Gentle.” She repeated. “They’re attached, baby boy, gotta be careful with them.”  
He raised his head from her neck, then bent down to her chest. The urge to bite her there was so great, it made his head spin, so much that he had to force himself away, kiss her mouth again, roughly.   
His jeans were undone, shimmied down, underwear tugged down just enough. Then his hand reached beneath the girls skirt. He touched her, and she moaned quietly.   
Her underwear yanked down in one quick move, Frank pushed her legs apart, started to get between them.  
“Wait.” She gasped, turning her face so he couldn’t kiss her.   
Waiting did not feel like an option to Frank. He lowered his mouth back to her neck, and moved himself closer to her.   
She pushed him back by the hips, closing her legs as she did.  
“I mean it, wait.” She said, a little more sternly.   
Frank lifted his head, but didn’t look at her, his face just beside hers, panting hard into her ear.   
“Do- Do you have a condom or something? Because I- I don’t and I’m not saying you’ve, you know, got anything, but I also kinda don’t want to get pregnant after… Whatever this is.”   
Frank laughed, quietly, almost shocking himself with how cold the laugh sounded.   
“I wouldn’t worry about that.” He said, quietly.   
She laughed, a little nervously. “Why? You shooting blanks or something?”   
Instead of replying, he reached back down, forcing her legs apart again, using that vampire strength to overpower her.   
Now she panicked, trying to push him off, to cross her legs. Something to get him to stop, even if only temporarily.   
“Please, not like this. Not like this. I really like you but-”  
His hand went over her mouth, the other hand gripping her shoulder. He lent in close to her ear, still panting from anticipation.   
“Close your eyes. This won’t take long.”   
He bent his head, creating a new wound in her neck, not such a neat one, and at the same time thrust himself into her.

 

The next thing he remembered, he was on the ground, and someone’s arms were around him.   
Immediately, he knew whose.   
_Alpha!_ His wolf piped.   
“Gee?” Frank said, his voice coming out groggy.   
His head felt heavy and slow. His mouth tasted thick, and not quite nice. Too much blood, he realised suddenly, he’d taken too much.   
Then, in a flash, the feeding came back to him. He sat up, suddenly, or, at least, as much as Gerard would let him.   
“Hey, hey, slow down baby.” Gerard said, soothingly, shifting Frank’s weight so he could sit up a little.   
“What happened?” Frank asked.   
Gerard blinked at him, then said, “You passed out. I think… I think you kinda blacked out first, but then you just… Dropped.”  
Gerard smiled, weakly. “Scared the fuck out of me, you did.”   
Frank was still trying to piece everything together. He remembered the girl, kissing her, making out with her and-   
His eyes went wide again, and again, Gerard tried to stop him from getting up, but he scrambled onto his knees and saw over Gerard’s shoulder.  
The girl was on the floor, sprawled out in unnatural angles.   
“Frank.” Gerard whispered, softly. “Please, don’t look. Okay? Don’t.”   
He had to though. He struggled against Gerard’s grip, who finally gave in, not wanting to hurt Frank by holding him any tighter.   
He ran the short distance to the girl.   
The very obviously dead girl.   
Both hands clamped over his mouth.   
Then, bracing himself against the wall, he bent almost double and coughed up excess blood.  
At least that part felt a little better now, he didn’t feel quite so glutted with blood anymore. Then he turned, looked at the girl again. A loud sob escaped him.   
Her neck was a mess, torn to pieces, bite marks all the way up to her jaw, and also down a little way to her shoulder. Blood pooled thickly beneath her, matting her hair.  
Her top was still pushed up, her skirt bunched, underwear nowhere to be seen.  
Blood on her thighs.   
Frank turned away and coughed up more blood.  
Gerard came up behind him, turned him around, held him close. Frank buried his face against Gerard’s chest.   
“I told you not to look, baby.”   
Frank was shaking. “Wh- What did I do to her? I- I didn’t mean…” 

“Well, one thing you somehow didn’t do was kill her.” Frank looked up, startled, as he heard Mikey’s voice.  
Mikey smiled faintly and shrugged. “I had the pleasant job of snapping her neck.” He glanced down at the body on the floor and added, “What was left of it, anyway.”   
Frank looked up at Gerard. “Why is Mikey here? Was he always here, or did you-”  
“I called Mikey after I realised… We needed help.”   
“You’re welcome, by the way.” Mikey added, with a grin and a roll of his eyes.   
Frank blinked, and slowly took in the two Way brothers, understanding what it was they were saying. What they weren’t saying.   
He tried not to look at the girl, but, in the end, he couldn’t help it. He looked away quickly.   
“This… This wasn’t normal, was it?”   
Neither of the brothers said anything, locking eyes with each other instead. Silent communication between them that had nothing to do with vampirism, but had everything to do with being family, in the truest meaning of the word.   
“What I did wasn’t normal, was it?” Frank pressed. He pointed at the bloody, ruined girl on the floor. “What I did to her, it wasn’t supposed to happen, it wasn’t a natural part of feeding, like I thought it was?”  
Gerard considered his words, very carefully. “Perhaps… This has something to do with your wolf. Perhaps this is… What’s natural for you.”   
They weren’t careful enough.   
Frank pushed him away, stepping backwards, looking wildly between the two vampires. “What’re you saying?”  
“Nothing right now, Frank.” Mikey said, calmly. “This is only your first time feeding, on someone other than Gerard. We have no reason to suspect that you’ll always-”  
“Tear my victims to pieces and rape them?” Once again, Frank’s hands clamped against his mouth, his eyes going wide as he finally voiced what he had done.   
“Frank.” Gerard said, just a little pleadingly, he looked so sorry, so sad. “Calm down, we can figure this out.”   
Frank shook his head, eyes fixing on the girl again, staring at the blood. All the blood. Repulsed to find that some part of him, tucked, hidden away inside him, still wanted more of that blood.   
Another sob escaped him, through his fingers. He sank to his knees, buried his face.   
“Oh god.” He said, tears suddenly streaming. “Oh god I’m- I’m a monster.”   
Gerard rushed over to him, wrapped his arms around him, a feeling of relief as Frank sank into him.   
“You’re not.” Gerard told him.   
“I am.”   
Gerard placed his hands on Frank’s face, making him look up.   
“You are not a monster.” Gerard insisted. An attempt at a smile tugged his lips.   
“You’re just… New.”   
Frank collapsed against him again.

And meanwhile Mikey rolled his eyes, muttering to himself. “Yep, you two go ahead and have your little moment… I’ll clear up the mess.”   
Then he looked at Frank, and felt sorry for grumbling.  
Mikey had been shocked and scared enough when he’d killed the first time, he couldn’t imagine what Frank must be going through.   
One thing Mikey knew though.  
Despite what anyone thought.   
None of them were monsters.  
They were just a different strain of humanity.


	3. Bleed Them All Just To Get My Fix

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Still reeling from Frank's first hunt, there is at least hope that it was an unfortunate bad first experience. But, will Frank ever want to try again to find out?

This one night, at least, it was easy to convince Frank to come back to the vampires home. Both Gerard and Mikey thought it a good idea, and Frank had no energy to argue. As they walked back, Frank was leaning on Gerard the whole way, so much so Gerard was tempted just to pick him up and carry him. 

They got to Gerard’s room and Frank immediately buried under the thick blankets, curling up and hiding.   
Gerard sat on the edge of the bed, looking at the shape under the covers, the little tuft of hair poking out at the top.   
He couldn’t think of what else to say to try and make this alright. 

Mikey stood in the doorway, watching them both.   
“Gee.” He said, softly.   
Gerard looked up, his eyes wide, they looked darker than usual.   
Mikey jerked his head, motioning for Gerard to follow him.  
Gerard didn’t move, just looked back at Frank.  
“Gee. Let him sleep, it was his first hunt tonight, you know you have to let him rest.”   
A small whimper escaped from under the covers at the word ‘hunt’.   
Gerard, not taking his eyes off the bundled figure, said quietly, “So this is how it goes? We pretend it was just another-”  
Mikey was beside Gerard in a second, gripping his arm, tight, cutting him off before he could finish. Gerard looked up, a little startled.   
“Gerard. Come with me, now. And give Frank the space and rest he needs.”   
Gerard bowed his head, then nodded, finally giving in. He leant forward, ran his fingers through the few visible strands of hair.   
“I’ll be back soon, I promise.”   
He hadn’t expected a reply, but he still wished he’d got one anyway. 

Mikey’s room was only the next one down. The two brothers settled down on the bed, side by side, staring up at the ceiling.   
“You did the right thing, calling for help.” Mikey said, eventually, breaking the silence.   
“If you hadn’t been able to come, I wouldn’t have called anyone else.”   
“I know.”   
Gerard closed his eyes, tight, and let out a long breath.   
“I don’t want the others knowing what happened.”  
“Gee…”  
“No. They can’t know. It’d- Mikes they treat him like a freak as it is. After this they-”  
“You know some of them would probably congratulate Frank for it, right? Tell him maybe he was all vamp after all. That he’d done the clan proud.”   
Gerard pushed himself up onto his elbows, and stared down at Mikey.   
“Don’t you think that’d be worse? Being congratulated for something he’s… Terrified of, repulsed by?”  
He fell back down, hand going over his eyes.   
“Oh shit… What about the wolves?”   
“What about them?”  
Removing his hand, and rolling onto his side, Gerard said,   
“You’ve met them, Mikes, You really think they’re going to be okay about this?”  
Mikey shrugged.  
“They’ve always said that Frank is… Family. That they won’t shun him, no matter what.”  
“Even when they find out he-”   
Gerard paused, closed his eyes, unable to describe what’d happened. Maybe he could’ve, had it been anyone else. But it was Frank, and he couldn’t- He couldn’t even make sense of what he’d seen.   
“Mikes.” Gerard said, quietly. “Have you… Ever lost control, when feeding?”  
Mikey thought for a moment, shifting through memories upon memories. Eventually he shook his head. “Not really. I mean… We’ve all taken more blood than we’ve needed, especially in the early hunts but-”  
“Mikey, you know that’s not the part I’m asking about.”   
Mikey sighed. “Yeah. I know.”   
A new silence filled the room, thick, full of things needed to be discussed, things they didn’t want to discuss. 

“I watched, the whole thing, I let it happen.” Gerard finally broke the silence.   
“You know you can’t interrupt when-”  
“I didn’t- I didn’t even realise anything was wrong, not at first. I could… I could hear his wolf, it was frantic, but I couldn’t tell why, it seemed.. It seemed natural.”  
Gerard laughed, shortly. “You know something really fucked up? I was jealous. I was jealous of that girl for every moment he was touching her. I- I wanted to fucking scream. Even- Even though I knew, I knew he had to get close like that, knew he had to… Seduce her. Even though I knew it’s what we all do.”   
He stopped, sighed, heavily and closed his eyes.   
“I felt like she deserved it when he- Tore at her neck like he did. I- Didn’t even consider that what he was doing was wrong.”  
Mikey tried to speak carefully. “It was… Gruesome, and violent, but. Some vampires are like that when they feed, and, I’ll say it again, especially early on, when they’re still learning, when they’re still getting used to getting blood like that-”  
“I didn’t even realise at first that he’d… Forced himself on her. She seemed so willing. Then- Mikey, he was so… Violent. I- Mikey, he’s never been like that. He’s not like that.”   
Gerard rolled back onto his back, covered his face with his hands. “I called you just before he passed out. He… He’d fallen forward, against the girl, and then he just- He just dropped. And. And that was the scariest thing. I didn’t know what’d happened, I’d never seen that happen before.”  
He paused.   
“The girl was screaming now, he’d kept her quiet before, hand over her mouth, but now she just screamed.”   
Another pause.   
“I realised… How much he’d hurt her when… I saw the blood on her legs, on her skirt. And- And the blood on him. My… My only thought was, making sure he was alright, getting him away. Maybe- Maybe trying to make sure he didn’t know what he’d done.”   
Mikey tutted. “Don’t you dare go feeling sorry for that girl, Gee. We are the hunters, they are the prey, natural order of things. You think the cat feels sorry for the bird it eats?”   
Gerard looked sideways, no thoughts on this point. He sighed, again.   
“He looked… So helpless, so… Vulnerable then, when I picked him up and pulled him away from the girl. I couldn’t- I couldn’t even begin to reconcile the person in my arms with the one who-”  
He closed his eyes once again.   
“Do you think he’ll always be like that?”   
“Gee… We can’t know that yet-”  
“Because you know what he’ll do if it is always like that, right? He’ll refuse to hunt. Now, I can sustain him on and off, and we have our sources for other blood, but- But Mikey, if he doesn’t- If he doesn’t hunt-”  
Mikey sat up suddenly, and pulled Gerard up with him too, holding him close, tight, while Gerard shook, violently.   
“Mikes, I- I turned him so we- So we could always be together. I can’t- I can’t loose him now, not because I turned him, what I turned him into.”  
“Calm down.” Mikey said, softly. “You’re not going to loose him.”  
“But if he doesn’t-”  
“There are many ways to hunt, Gee. If need be, you hunt with him, share your prey with him, that way you’re right there if he starts to get out of control, you can stop him.”  
Mikey pulled back, to look at Gerard then. “And you know you can stop him, that freaky fucking alpha mojo will make sure of that.”  
Gerard laughed as Mikey called it that.   
“And… You know I hate to admit it, but… You really did create something… Pretty amazing when you turned Frank, you know that?”   
Gerard smiled, nodded. “He’s complicated as fuck… More than ever but. I love him.” 

Eventually Gerard went back to his own room, and stripped off to climb into bed.   
He was slightly surprised to find that the shape in the bed had changed. Frank had shifted into wolf form, and fallen asleep like that. Gerard understood, the mind of a wolf was simpler, more straight forward than that of a human, it was likely one way Frank could think of to shut his brain off enough to sleep.   
Gerard smiled slightly and tutted. “You know you’re meant to sleep on top of the covers when you’re a wolf.”   
Then, looking over the sleek black wolf, and how peacefully it was sleeping, Gerard sighed. “I’ll let you off this once though.” 

///

When Gerard woke, Frank had shifted again, back to human form. It often happened that way, if he fell asleep as a wolf, he’d shift back to human at some point during the night.   
Gerard sat up a little, looking down at Frank. All thoughts of the previous night currently far from his mind.   
Then, slowly, it seemed to him, he became aware of a very distinct feeling of being watched.  
There was a vampire standing in his doorway, the door wide open.  
Instinctively Gerard moved closer to Frank.   
The other vampire smirked as he noticed this, and pushed himself off the doorframe where he’d been leaning.   
Though Gerard would rather keep Frank away from every other vampire in the place, apart from Mikey, there were a few that Gerard actively made sure he stayed clear of when he was with Frank.   
This vampire, Vincent, was definitely one of them.   
Vincent had been turned at a young age. He’d barely passed his seventeenth birthday when he’d been brought into this new life. Gerard remembered the first few months of Vincent’s vampire life. He’d been a whiny brat.   
He was still a brat, though no longer whiny. He had the air of a spoilt child, used to getting his way.   
He was also cruel, and had little care for anyone other than himself.   
And he had always, always hated Frank. That much he’d made clear, and had made a point to steer as far clear from Gerard’s room whenever Frank was there, complaining loudly to anyone that’d listen that he was scared of catching fleas.   
And yet, now here he was, walking right into Gerard’s room, pulling out his chair, and… Of course, sitting up on Gerard’s desk and setting his feet on the chair.   
Vincent sat forward, his elbows resting on his knees as he smiled sickeningly sweetly. He brushed back his dark blue hair out of his eyes, and stared, quite pointedly at the still sleeping Frank.   
Gerard sat up more, an arm pulling Frank closer.   
“Get out of here, Vincent.” His voice was calm, even, but it just barely masked the fury at this so insolent vampire.   
Vincent just continued to smile.   
“I thought you didn’t like coming near my room when Frank’s here, so what the hell are you-”  
“Heard some interesting things about your boy.” Vincent interrupted.   
Gerard’s words froze on his tongue.   
He felt himself still completely, not daring to move.   
When he did move again, it was only to shift down in the bed slightly, trying to find a way of protecting Frank from this.  
Of course, keeping secrets from vampires is near impossible. He knew that, and yet, he’d hoped…   
“Doesn’t matter what you’ve heard.” Gerard said, a hint of fierceness creeping into his voice now, a warning.   
Of course Vincent ignored this.   
“It is not something to be discussed.”   
Vincent grinned at him. “Oh, but it is.” The young vampire insisted. “I feel like I’ve misjudged your little plaything quite immensely.”   
He showed teeth and fangs with his next smile. “Seems like he’s more one of us than we ever thought.”   
Frank was stirring now, waking up.  
Gerard silently begged him to stay asleep, just a little longer.   
“I told you, I’m not discussing it. Now get the hell out of here Vincent, before I-”   
“Gee?”   
Too late.   
Frank was awake.   
Gerard snuggled down next to him, brushed a hand back into Frank’s hair, and shushed gently at him. “It’s okay, Frank. Just an unexpected visitor, they’re going now. You can sleep some more.”   
While Gerard had taken his eyes off him, Vincent had slipped off the desk, and was now sat on the end of the bed, leaning very slightly in towards Frank, looking at him, wide eyed, seemingly fascinated.   
Frank glanced, and mirrored the wide eyed look back at the vampire. Part out of shock, and part out of fear.   
He could never forget the way this vampire had treated him, that first time he’d been found by the vampires in their home.   
Frank sat up, shrinking away from Vincent, he leaned into Gerard, gripping him tight.   
“No need to be so afraid of me, Frankie.” Vincent said, sweetly, careful as always to show as much fang as possible. A silly, vain trait that all the vampires agreed was petty at best, and foolish at worst.   
“I’m actually here to congratulate you.”   
Frank blinked, slowly at him, and leant closer against Gerard. He knew, immediately, what Vincent was saying.  
“Vincent. Stop it, Frank doesn’t want-”  
“Turns out your more vampire than even some of us are.” Vincent continued, over Gerard’s warning words.   
Gerard knew, he’d known this would happen eventually.   
He just hadn’t expected that what he and Mikey had been discussing last night, would happen so quickly.   
Frank shook his head. “I’m not- I’m not proud of what happened. I- I hate it.”   
“What?!” Vincent exclaimed, nearly laughing. “You did us vamps proud, Frankie. Shit! Even I’ve never torn up a piece a prey like they’re saying you did!”   
Gerard put his arm around Frank, pulling him in.   
Frank shook his head, again. “It wasn’t supposed to be like that. I didn’t mean-”   
“And as for raping the bitch… Damn. It took me, what… A year? I think it was a year before I had the fucking guts to take what I wanted like that.”   
Vincent crawled closer onto the bed, his voice dropping as he continued, “Of course, so many of them want to jump on our dicks anyway…”  
“Vincent!” Gerard snapped, now that the young vampire was close, Gerard was physically able to try and push him away.  
It didn’t work, Vincent’s eyes were still fixed on Frank, and it was clear he wasn’t done.   
“Hear you tore her apart pretty bad down there too, huh? Shit, you must’ve been fierce with her, relentless. How’d it feel? Did you feel it when she started bleeding? Or did you only notice when you pulled out and found your-”  
Abruptly, Vincent stopped, his words choked off by a hand at his throat.   
Mikey had joined them, and he was not impressed by what he found.  
“Leave.” Mikey hissed at Vincent, practically throwing him out the door.   
Vincent scowled from the doorway at Mikey.  
Then placed his gaze back on Frank, smirking once more as he walked away. 

“You guys alright?” Mikey asked, looking tentatively between Gerard and Frank.   
Frank was buried against Gerard, his head bowed low, hair covering the rest of his face. He was shaking, badly.  
Gerard pulled him up onto his lap, and stroked his hand back through Frank’s hair.   
He nodded at Mikey, but couldn’t make himself say they were alright.   
Still, Mikey nodded, once, and left them. 

The shaking turned into a slightly harsher shudder, then Gerard felt Frank’s fingers digging into his arms.   
Even these earliest of signs, Gerard recognised.   
He kissed the top of Frank’s head, and said, softly. “Please don’t shift again, Frankie. Not so soon.”   
The shuddering stopped, but Frank’s body still felt tense.   
“The wolf can rationalise it.” Frank said, very, very quietly. “He knows… He knows what happened is wrong but. He doesn’t think it’s my fault.”   
“That’s because it’s not.” Gerard said, gently.   
Frank nodded. “Yes it is. No one else did what I did to that girl. It can only be my fault. There is no one else!”  
“Frank…”   
“I wanna go home Gee.”   
Gerard didn’t answer right away.   
“I don’t want to be here, where the vampires are going to… Stare at me, and- and congratulate me on what I did. I don’t- I can’t deal with that.”   
Gerard stayed quiet, just for a few seconds.   
“Frank… You. Can’t. Not, yet. It’s… Daytime.”   
It was a barely contained scream that escaped Frank that time.   
“Then let me be a wolf until we can go home!” He pleaded. “I don’t- I don’t want to deal with them, I-”  
Gerard didn’t answer. He couldn’t. He didn’t want to deny Frank what he wanted, but… He didn’t want Frank to disappear on him.   
He wanted to hold Frank, keep him close.  
Even if he had no idea how to keep him safe. 

///

The kitchen had been barely used for over a week, except as a place to store and collect blood. Though it had become apparent that, unlike a typical vampire, Frank still needed to eat like he had before, he hadn’t attempted anything close to a meal. It was one thing Gerard missed, even though he had no need for food, he’d liked the… Normalness of it. Like they were any other couple, sharing meals.   
But Frank was only having the smallest snacks here and there. Gerard assumed his body was trying to adjust to the balance of real food and blood, but it didn’t stop him worrying.   
For Gerard, the kitchen had become more of a place where he could just… Quietly think, and often alone, since Frank so rarely came in there.   
As much as he wanted to be close to Frank, didn’t want to avoid him, there were so many questions on Gerard’s mind, so many things he was trying to figure out.  
And some things, he knew, he needed to figure out sooner rather than later. 

Frank eventually slunk in. Gerard looked up, smiled, and Frank came over to him, wrapped his arms around Gerard and softly kissed his cheek. Frank started to pull away, before Gerard pulled him back and kissed him again, this time on the lips.   
“You hungry?” Gerard asked, quietly.   
Frank nodded, and Gerard slid himself off his stool, encouraging Frank to sit instead.   
Frank leant forward, his chin resting on his hands, smiling contentedly.   
The smile faded as he saw Gerard go to the blood supply, emptying a few vials into a glass.   
“I didn’t mean that kind of hungry, Gee.” Frank said, quietly.   
Gerard ignored him, and set the glass down, pulling up the second stool, pulling it close to where Frank sat.   
“You haven’t had any all day.” Gerard told him, gently.   
Frank closed his eyes. “I’m fine.”   
“You’re not.” Gerard pressed, his voice still soft, coaxing. He reached his hand out, brushed back Frank’s hair. He tried a smile. “You forget I’ve been doing this a while, I can tell when a vampire is lacking sustenance.”  
Frank bowed his head, saying nothing in reply.   
Gerard reached out, took his hands. Suddenly struck that, for the first time, Frank’s skin felt the same kind of cold that any vampire did. And, somehow, that scared him.   
“Frank, please. At least have this.” He pushed the glass closer to Frank. “At least for now.”   
Still, there was no reply, Frank barely seemed to hear the words.   
Gerard sighed, deeply.   
“And… I know you don’t want to talk about this but. Frank, we can’t avoid the topic of hunting, of feeding, forever. You must- Surely your body is screaming at you, telling you how much you need it.”  
Now, finally, Frank looked up, his eyes fixed on Gerard’s.  
His hands were trembling slightly, even as they were held in Gerard’s.   
“It screams.” Frank said, quietly, carefully. “And… The wolf howls. It knows I’m not… Alright.”  
He bowed his head again. “It’s so loud inside my head sometimes… It’s all I can do to stop from screaming out loud.”   
Gerard held his hands tighter, and leaned in, closer. “You can make it stop. Please, stop putting yourself through this. Let’s- Let’s go out again, later, tonight. I can- I can ask Mikey to come with us. And- And Frank, I promise I will stay with you, the whole time.”  
Frank was shaking his head, hard, his eyes squeezed shut, obvious he was trying to stop himself from crying.   
Gerard gripped his hands so tight he was almost scared of breaking bones.   
“Frank! I am your alpha, and what’s more, I made you into a vampire. If I stay close, I can stop you, I can guide you so you don’t end up doing something you’ll regret.”   
Slowly, Frank looked up again. His eyes were slightly damp, but now they flashed with something, a hint of red. Gone again quickly. A blink and Gerard would have missed it.   
“Why didn’t you stop me last time?” Frank asked. His voice was still quiet, but it came out slightly harder now.   
It was exactly what Gerard had been asking himself, ever since.   
The only explanation he had was the truth, even though he considered it a pitiful one.   
“I… Didn’t realise what was happening. I was too far away. I thought- I thought the sex was… Consensual.”   
In his head, Gerard added, And I hated her for it.   
Frank’s eyes were closed once again, head down, and it was obvious he was really crying now.  
Gerard came down off his stool, wrapped himself around Frank, who held onto him, tight.   
“Please.” Gerard said, quietly, but more than loud enough for Frank to hear. “Please, you can’t starve yourself like this. Please don’t do this.” 

The minutes passed, slowly, and the tears stopped, on both sides.  
It was with a hand so shaky it threatened to spill the contents, Frank picked up the glass, taking it in two hands as he brought it up to his lips.   
Gerard kissed his face, over and over while Frank slowly drained the glass.   
The empty glass set down, and Gerard kissed his lips and the tears came back. 

Frank kissed at Gerard’s ear, slow, carefully placed kisses, his breath huffing slightly from what was left of the tears.  
“I’ll- I will try, again. To. Hunt. Just- Just give me a little time, Gee, please?” 

///

Another week passed, and still Frank was not ready.   
Gerard only ever brought it up gently, but he was starting to worry now. It was going too long, how much longer could Frank go? The longest Gerard had ever gone without actual- Actual hunting was a month. Back when him and Frank had first got together, a certain feeling of loyalty and the knowledge that the sensations that came with feeding were, truly, not purely about food. It was pleasure. The intimate nature was undeniable.   
At least Frank was drinking more of the supply they had again. The space of time when Frank had barely touched any blood had terrified Gerard. But, again, he wondered how much longer this could go on. 

They’d lost track of day and night again, but it didn’t matter, the shutters kept them both safe from daylight. They knew they’d spent too many hours in bed, again, but they were so comfortable, so content as they were, neither tried, or wanted to move. 

Their kisses were light, a little sparse, long gaps between each one, but they smiled continually.   
“I was thinking…” Gerard said, almost wincing to break the silence. “If you’re still not ready to…”  
He let the sentence hang, and felt Frank stiffen, reluctant to go down this path.   
“I was just going to suggest… You know you can… Feed from me.”   
Gerard had tried to offer this before, only to be cut off, shut down before he could finish the sentence.   
He couldn’t say it, but Gerard badly wanted to feed from Frank too, he wanted that rush, that feeling they only got from each other. Some nights it was all he could do to stop himself thinking about that.   
Or thinking about the fact they hadn’t had sex since… That night.   
He knew he wasn’t the only one who wanted it, all of it, badly. Sometimes the subtlest of touches would make Frank freeze, and there’d be a moment where they knew exactly what they were both thinking, and in that moment it would seem like something might happen. But that would be when Frank would pull away again, denying them both.   
Now though, Frank looked up at Gerard, and blinked, slowly.   
“Are… Are you sure you trust me? Not to-”  
Gerard kissed him, deeply, cutting him off.   
“Of course I trust you.” He murmured against Frank’s lips, before kissing him again. Then, very slow, purposefully, Gerard brushed his hair away from his neck, tilting his head slightly to expose it more.  
Frank just watched him, barely daring to move. His skin felt hot, prickly. Excited.   
Gerard’s hand reached up, into Frank’s hair and carefully guided him down.   
Frank’s panted breath felt warm against Gerard’s skin, and it was maddening to have him so close.   
A quick but gentle tug to Frank’s hair. Then he felt the fangs grazing his skin, and Gerard gasped very softly.   
“You know how to do this.” Gerard said, “Don’t be scared of it.”   
And then, finally, finally, that sharper, fuller pain came, as the fangs stopped testing and punctured skin and Gerard could feel that tug of soft sucking, drawing blood from him.   
It should scare him, panic him. Any vampire should be terrified of loosing blood this way. But, once again, as it always seemed to be with them, it was not scary in the least.   
Gerard’s hand gripped Frank’s hair tighter, and soft moans escaped his lips. Frank’s hand took hold of his free one, holding tight. 

Even though his mind was filled with sensations, the excitement and overwhelming pleasure, there was a little space in Gerard’s brain to marvel how… Gentle this was, while still being undeniably hot. Frank was feeding, his fangs deep, and yet the sucking was soft, and no more than one bite mark made. They were pressed close together, hips moving very subtly, but there was no forcefulness.   
Hands slipped into underwear at almost the same instant, touching one another, a deeper moan from Gerard, and Frank’s fangs bit a little harder, causing Gerard to wince, just the tiniest bit. 

Frank raised his head, gasping, and trailed wet, slightly sticky kisses up Gerard’s jaw line, to his lips, both kissing hungrily.   
“Want you.” The blunt proclamation followed up by Frank rolling over onto his front.   
Even as Gerard moved over him, behind him, he asked, “Are you sure you’re done? You don’t need more blood?”   
Frank just whined softly in response.   
Hurried but thorough prep, a slight repositioning, pulling Frank up to his knees. Gerard’s initial going into him was fast, and he pulled out slow. Frank’s head was down, gasping, his lips still feeling wet with blood.   
Then he felt a hand, close to his mouth.   
It took him a second to realise it wasn’t the hand he was being offered, it was the wrist.   
“If- If you need-” Gerard’s words were heavy, but easily understandable.   
Frank latched on quickly, and heard Gerard’s cry, before it melted into a series of soft, pretty gasps.

It has to be mentioned, ever since their very first night together, it has been undeniable how good sex with each other is. Something unlike what either had experienced before. Something so right, something so good.  
But, somehow, this night, even though there was little different to other nights, this night it reached a new level. Both orgasms more intense, and somehow lasting longer.

It was an exhausted bundle that they fell into after, blood still smeared a little on Frank’s cheek, while the wounds on Gerard stopped their bleeding, forgotten now.   
A relief washed over Frank. He hadn’t lost control, no one was hurt. Perhaps… That night had been just an unfortunate occurrence, rather than an indication there was anything wrong with him. 

“I think… Maybe. I could try hunting again… Tomorrow night?”   
Gerard squeezed him tight, and kissed his neck, making Frank shudder excitedly.

///

Frank was nervous, but not scared like he had been. Feeling reassured by the more than successful experience the night before, Frank had found a new confidence in himself. Something close to a sureness.   
He could do this, and he could do it without anything horrific happening.   
A different, nicer bar this night, and Gerard stayed close by him the whole time. Both were dressed slightly smartly. Black shirts worn by both. Only practical when blood is guaranteed to be involved with your night.   
As promised, Mikey was around too. He hadn’t come in with them, but he was there, keeping an eye out, just in case. This place happened to be a favourite for both the Way brothers, so Mikey hadn’t even hesitated to say he’d come along. 

Gerard got him and Frank settled in a small booth, near the back.   
And Gerard insisted that he would go and find a suitable ’feed’ for Frank.   
A soft hand in Frank’s hair and a deep kiss to his mouth and Gerard promised, “I’ll find you the best out there.” 

Even though a part of him hesitated, even though part of him didn’t want Frank touching anyone else, and vice versa, Gerard was pleased, more than pleased that Frank had finally taken this step again.   
And he took comfort that at least he would choose who Frank consorted with. 

It didn’t take long to catch someone’s attention. Gerard had tried a couple of likely seeming guys first, only to discover they were each waiting for their dates to show.  
Eventually a girl, who seemed disappointed at first that Gerard wasn’t coming on to her himself, the disappointment melted as soon as Frank was pointed out to her. 

Frank watched unwaveringly as Gerard walked back to the table with the girl. He glanced at the girl, noted she was pretty, but his eyes were quickly fixed on Gerard. He couldn’t help it.   
Gerard kissed him again before he sat down one side of Frank, while the girl settled next to him the other side.  
The girl looked between Frank and Gerard, noticing the way they leant slightly towards each other, and, even more noticeably, the hands that were loosely linked.   
She smiled, tucked her dark hair back behind her ear and carefully crossed her legs, her knee gently bumping against Frank’s leg as she did.   
“So. Um. You two…?”  
“We’re together.” Gerard clarified with a nod.   
The girl sat forward slightly, elbows on the table. “So… Where do I fit into the equation? You guys into like, threesomes and stuff?” She laughed, shrugged. Clearly unsure what she thought about this.   
Both Frank and Gerard shook their heads, and Frank leant slightly back into Gerard.  
A gentle nudge and Frank moved a little closer to the girl, a hand reaching out to the one she’d placed on her knee.   
She watched the hand, eyes tracing over the tattoos, all the while also surprised, pleased by this forward action.   
“It’s like I explained. This is for Frank. I’m just going to… Be here.”  
The girl smiled wider, a little wickedly. “You’re into watching, huh?”   
Gerard forced himself to smile back, trying not to get distracted by the hot jealousy rising within him.   
“Something like that.” Gerard replied. 

The girl turned her full attention to Frank, reached up, lightly touched his hair. “Do I get to hear you speak, shy one?”   
Frank ducked his head a little. “I’m… Not so sure how much longer you’ll consider me shy.”   
He leaned a little closer then, hesitated, then kissed her.   
Gerard looked away, just because he’d said he’d stay close, make sure nothing could go wrong, didn’t mean he had to watch this. His skin felt prickly, he could swear his fangs ached with the want to simply kill this girl. There was some deep, dark feeling right at the core of his being, a primal fury. He understood that this must, had to be something to do with his alpha status, but this knowledge did nothing to dull the feeling, to quiet the screams in his head of ‘MINE!’

Somehow this was better than last time. Frank knew that having Gerard right there, so close was part of what made it so good. It lessened the guilt, somehow. Gerard had given permission for this, continued to give consent. It made his urges so much easier, since he wasn’t trying to deny them.   
The girl kissed deeply, just a little dirty, her tongue teasing and wanting Frank’s quickly.  
Frank nudged at her leg, got her to uncross, part them a little.  
“If you wanna play that kind of game… We’ll need somewhere more private.” The girl said.  
Gerard touched Frank’s shoulder, and immediately he looked round.  
A rush of conflict surged inside Gerard as he saw the look on Frank’s face, his eyes wide and hungry.  
He knew, he knew hunting and feeding was important for Frank to learn but…   
He wondered if Frank would still have the energy to make out with him after, at least. 

Gerard led them upstairs, as the walked up, he spotted Mikey, who was keeping track of their movements. Once again Gerard felt himself calm a little, just knowing that Mikey was there too. 

The bathrooms were all large, individual rooms, long and a still fairly wide, one side dominated by a mirror which stretched across the top of a counter, in which a sink sat in the middle, the rest of the space taken up in part by towels and soaps, the rest was clear and empty.   
The girl narrowed her eyes a little as Gerard locked the door.   
“So you’re… Really gonna stay for this?” She seemed to have slightly gone off the idea of being watched.   
It was territorial and just slightly petty, Gerard knew, but he curled his arm around Frank’s waist, pulled him close and kissed him deeply, pleased when Frank reciprocated, and pressed himself close.   
“He stays.” Frank said, without room for questions. 

All questions were further stemmed as Frank moved close, his arms wrapping around her waist, the kisses picking up where they’d left off.   
Gerard stood at the door, watching Frank, telling himself he had to watch Frank, had to make sure he was okay through these next steps, the crucial steps.   
His hands were in such painfully tight fists.   
The girl pushed herself up, with Frank’s help, to sit up on the counter, parting her legs, crossing her ankles behind Frank, bringing him close. His hands ran up and down her thighs, his kisses working down to her neck. Not just yet, not just yet… Soon. Soon.   
Her hand slipped down between them, rubbing at his crotch.   
He laughed, very softly. “Want it bad, huh?”   
Her returned laugh was one of fake shyness, but she undid the zip of his pants, slipped her fingers past the opening.   
He grinned, carried on kissing her, knowing what she wanted, but having fun making her wait.  
Want you to beg.  
In the end, he couldn’t wait either, his hand getting up, under her skirt, fingers getting into her underwear, getting inside her, grinning as she moaned, as he found her wet already. He kissed down her throat as she tipped her head back, then slowly round to her neck.   
She was undoing the buttons of his shirt, eyes going wide as she pushed it back, revealing the tattooed skin beneath, she ran her hand over his chest.   
Somehow this made Gerard even more jealous, more furious.   
The last girl hadn’t sought out Frank’s skin like this, hadn’t looked and touched it like it was all for her to enjoy. These were things meant for Gerard’s eyes, Gerard’s touch.   
He wanted to twist the girls hand away, make her understand that it was not hers, none of Frank was hers. 

Frank had let his fangs pierce the girls skin, and she had gasped, such a high little gasp.   
Her hand was undoing the button on Frank’s pants, and she was fidgeting with her underwear, trying to get it down.  
“I- I’m on the pill so, don’t worry about… Accidents. We’re covered.” The girl told him.   
Frank was barely listening, his mind focused on blood, and the other kind of lust. He paused his feeding long enough to pull back, slip down the girls underwear, then pull her closer.  
The initial thrust in was slower than Frank thought it might be, not quite as easy. She moaned, tipped her head back, and Frank took the opportunity to lower his mouth to her neck again, feeding a little harder now.   
Gerard couldn’t help it, he looked away, closed his eyes.   
_It’s obvious everything is fine. I should just leave._  
His hand tightened around the door handle as he heard the girls moans pick up speed and volume, heard the muffled sounds from Frank.   
_I can’t do this… I can’t deal with this._   
His eyes opened, almost without him wanting to, and he took it in again.   
He watched the girl leaning forward, against Frank, saw him buried at her neck, his hips moving against her.  
Everything seemed to be… Going to plan.   
But then why was there something bothering Gerard? Telling him there was something very wrong happening. 

Frank raised his head, and licked up the girls neck, making her shiver, trailing blood.   
His mouth was at her ear. “You know they call orgasms ‘little deaths’, right?”   
The girl took in a shaky breath. “Y- yeah.” She moaned, and pulled Frank closer.  
He started going faster, pushing harder, he bit her in a new place on her neck, then again.   
The girl winced. “S-slow down a little, you’re… Starting to hurt.”  
Frank licked at the blood of a new wound, and paid no attention to her words. 

A sinking feeling came over Gerard as he realised, while the girl had been willing to begin with, now, now Frank was loosing control, not listening. He watched at more bite marks decorated the girls skin, as Frank sucked and licked at the wounds. The girl was only softly begging him to slow down a little, she wasn’t panicking yet, but there was something in her voice that told Gerard she wasn’t far off.   
And then Gerard came to understand just how far it had gone, even while he’d thought everything was fine.   
Frank pulled back completely, and his hand went under the girls skirt again.  
His fingers came away bloody.  
The girl opened her eyes at just the wrong moment, and saw it too, and saw the blood on Frank’s mouth.   
She screamed, her hand going to her neck, as if she only just registered the pain.   
She moved as if to push Frank back, to get down from the counter, to get away. But while one hand clamped over her mouth, Frank grabbed her by the waist, pulled her down from he counter, and turned her around, pinning her down.

Gerard had already fired off a message to Mikey, one he’d saved in his phone, ready, just in case. Now he stepped closer to Frank, a hand on his shoulder, squeezing gently.   
“Frank.” Gerard said, calmly, even though his voice shook as he said it. “You know you don’t really want to do this.”  
The girl was still struggling, tears streaming and running down Frank’s hand.   
He acted like he didn’t hear Gerard, he was leaning over the girl, licking at the bites he’d already made.  
Gerard watched, as he witnessed something he’d never seen a vampire do before, as Frank latched on to a chunk of flesh on the girls shoulder, and tore it away.  
The blood was thick and it ran across the counter now, making Gerard feel dizzy, and needy, wanting.   
“Frank!” Gerard snapped, trying to make himself focus, but all he could focus on was the way Frank had buried his face against that wound, sucking at it, tearing at it more.   
His hand was under the girls skirt again, and he was kicking her legs apart.  
Gerard grabbed at his arm, ignoring as best he could the blood on Frank’s hand.  
Frank wasn’t listening, but maybe his wolf would.

It took some searching, but, eventually Gerard found the wolf, was able to communicate with it.   
_Can you stop him?_   
The wolf whined in response.   
_So this isn’t you making him do this?_  
Another whine. Then, finally, it spoke. _It’s not me, alpha! Please, make him stop, I don’t- I don’t like this- I don’t like it. He’s not meant to be like this. He’s- He’s scaring me._  
The wolf sounded terrified.  
And that scared Gerard even more.   
Not least because this meant it wasn’t the wolf making Frank like this.   
_I’m gonna stop this, I promise._   
Another, quieter whine.   
Gerard brought his attention back to Frank then, and stroked back at his hair, trying to calm him.   
Frank raised his head then, and, in the mirror, it’s possible Gerard had imagined it, but… Something seemed to pass over Frank’s eyes, he blinked once and they seemed… It seemed like they were black, wholly so.   
And then, without warning, his eyes closed, and he collapsed back, falling back into Gerard as he passed out, just like last time. 

 

When Frank finally came to, he was curled up on Gerard’s lap, who was sitting on the floor of the bathroom still, all but cradling him.   
Gerard smiled at him, softly. But the smile faltered.   
And Frank knew why without even having to ask.   
He knew, even if his mind remained a little cloudy on details, he knew what had happened. He knew what he’d done again.   
Frank turned his face, burying it against Gerard’s chest and sobbed.  
Gerard’s hand on his back, rubbing it gently. “It’s alright, Frank, I promise, it’s over now.”   
Frank couldn’t even gather a reply to that. 

That time Gerard did carry Frank home, ignoring the protests of both Frank, and Mikey, who insisted it would look strange.   
Gerard said he didn’t care, and, in reality, Frank was glad of it. He didn’t feel like his legs could hold him up. 

They went back, again, to Frank’s apartment, and Gerard all but tucked Frank in to bed, telling him to ‘rest, and try not to worry’.  
“We’re going to figure this out, I promise.”  
Frank was so tired he could only just manage to nod. 

///

It was dark, but not so dark that made it difficult to see. Plus vampire and werewolf eyesight made it even easier to see through the dark. 

There was something up ahead, and while Frank didn’t want to know, could feel it deep, deep inside of him he didn’t want to know what was up ahead, he found himself walking closer anyway. 

He quickly understood it was a vampire, feeding.  
But… Something was off.   
The human was already dead, lying on the ground. It had died from blood loss at least half an hour previously. It looked like a few bones had been broken, and there was a lot of blood on the ground.  
A lot of bite marks, everywhere visible, there was a bite, some simple, careful ones, in other places whole chunks of flesh were missing.  
The vampire or… Whatever, had it’s face buried in the human’s stomach, horrific noises accompanying their feeding. 

This wasn’t right. Frank knew how vampires fed, he’d seen Mikey do it, he’d seen Gerard do it, and so many others of the clan. What this vampire was doing was- 

The vampire raised it’s head, as if it realised it was being watched.  
Blood dripped from it’s chin, it’s mouth was open, showing of it’s fangs and teeth, all covered in blood.   
It took Frank a second to fully process what he was seeing.   
Then it hit him.  
The vampire, the one doing everything so wrong…   
It was him. 

Frank staggered back, trying to get away. Fast.

The ‘other’ him stood slowly, wiped at his mouth with the back of his sleeve. A smile placed upon his lips, and in a slow blink, his eyes become something impossibly bright, impossibly green. 

Frank turned, and ran.

He woke with a jolt so violent, he sat up, taking a few seconds to recognise his own room, and to realise that Gerard was beside him, also awake, also sat up, asking him what was wrong.


	4. I Am My Own Bomb, I Am My Own Slave

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After another horrific attempt at hunting, Frank retreats further, more afraid than ever of what he has become. While Gerard is equally as confused as to what is happening, he is more concerned with keeping Frank alive, getting him through this. 
> 
> Things take a turn when Gerard takes drastic measures. And, finally, they are given some clues as to just what it is that causes the bloody deeds that Frank commits.

Before had been bad, but now was even worse.   
Frank practically stayed hidden in bed all day, and night, and through to the next.   
Though Gerard tried to coax him, to talk to him, Frank did not reply. The only reason Gerard felt like Frank wasn’t ignoring him was because whenever Gerard came within reach, Frank would take hold of his hand and pull him in, hold him close. Even then Frank wouldn’t speak.  
Gerard grew more worried, more scared as he realised that not only was Frank denying himself the blood his vampire self needed, he was also refusing to even eat simple, normal food. 

Curled around the tight ball that Frank had wound himself into, Gerard stroked his hair, and pleaded, just a little desperately.   
“Please. I- I understand if you don’t want… Blood right now, but, Frank you still need food, the other kind. At least have that, don’t deny yourself that, please.”   
Frank shook his head, and hid his face against Gerard’s arm. 

Eventually, Gerard lost patience with him. “I will not let you starve yourself.”   
He went to get up, to go to the kitchen, slightly wild thoughts of force feeding Frank spinning in his head. But Frank held him fast, wouldn’t let him go, and whimpered softly.  
Gerard leant in to him again, stroked his face, which was tear stained and paler than ever. “Please, Frank. Let me… Let me in a little here. Let me help.”   
More silence.   
“You won’t eat, you’re not talking to me… Frank, you’re. You’re scaring me, please, just-”  
“You’re scared?” Frank’s voice was extremely quiet, a little cracked.   
Gerard kissed Frank’s forehead, mostly out of relief.   
“Scared for you, baby.” Gerard said, gently.   
Frank sighed, heavily.   
His breath came out in a soft huff, a let on that he was trying not to cry.   
“I’m terrified.” Frank admitted, in that same small, broken voice. “I don’t- I don’t know what’s- I mean. I know what’s happening, I’ve become a vampire, right? But- But it’s not going the way it’s meant to. And I keep- I keep-”  
A hand went to his mouth, almost like he was going to be sick.   
“I couldn’t remember, at first, what I’d done. But… It comes back now, in patches. And I can- See, hear, feel everything and- and-”  
Gerard pulled him closer, tighter.  
“It’s not your fault, baby. You know it’s not… It’s not really you that-”  
“Then whose fault is it?” Frank snapped, suddenly.   
“If not my fault, whose?”   
Gerard was silent.   
He had no answer for this.   
“You and I both know it isn’t the wolf doing this.” Frank said. “I know that’s what you keep telling Mikey, what you keep telling all the vampires, that it must be the wolf that make me- makes me-”   
Eyes tight closed, more tears stinging, forcing their way out.   
“But I know you’ve talked to the wolf, I know you know it’s not him that does this.”   
His voice went even quieter. “I know he’s scared of me too.”   
Gerard shook his head. “Not of you, just… Just of-”  
“Of what I get like when I feed, right?” Frank pulled away then, leant back against the wall, rubbing his hands over his face. “Fuck. I’m just- I’m just glad I haven’t hurt you. That’s something, at least.”   
Gerard tried to smile, but he couldn’t quite. “I think this goes back to what we already know… We can’t hurt each other, our ties won’t let us.”   
Frank nodded.   
“Why… Why do I have to be like this? What went wrong with me?”  
Gerard shook his head. “I don’t… I don’t know. There’s never… Frank there’s never been anyone like you before.”  
Frank closed his eyes. “Let’s hope there’s never another one after, either.” 

///

It carried on for days, a few weeks, even. Eventually Frank was so exhausted, in so much pain all Gerard could do was finally start forcing him to take supplements. By this point Frank was so far past attempting to make any kind of stand. So spent of energy, hurting so much from lack of blood, he needed to be propped up in bed just to swallow these stand ins for food that Gerard offered him, until he was eventually, slowly coaxed into eating normally again. Even he saw how foolish he’d been.  
But, still, Frank refused blood, of any kind. Once Gerard had tried to sneak some into a drink, but Frank caught it right away.   
They had an argument over that. Frank saying he didn’t want it, and that Gerard should respect that, and Gerard saying he needed it, it’s not about choice.   
“If you keep going like this you’re gonna end up blood starved, and you know what comes then? Then you get so weak you can barely move, you start to go blind, and then, then you start to loose your mind. Is that what you want? You think I want to watch that happen to you?”   
He was leaning over Frank, pinning his hands down as he’d tried to cover his ears, so he wouldn’t have to hear what Gerard was saying.   
“Would you listen?!” Gerard snapped. “Understand I am not sneaking blood into your food, your drink to trick or hurt you, I’m trying to fucking save you from going fucking crazy!”   
“How do we even know that’ll happen to me?” Frank demanded, trying to sit up. “How do we even fucking know those rules apply to me? I’m a fucking freak, remember? A freak among freaks! A- a violent- abhorrent- fucking, raping- destructive freak!”   
For a few moments, Gerard stared down at him, then, quite suddenly, let Frank go and went to walk out the door.   
Frank sat up, he wanted to stay mad but… Now he was just scared that Gerard was leaving.   
“I just- This is just getting so hard to watch, Frank.”  
Frank was relieved when he didn’t hear the front door open and close. He thought, perhaps, he would really give up entirely if Gerard left. 

///

Gerard could already see the earliest onsets of it. Frank’s eyes growing paler, his hands shaking. If he didn’t find some way to convince Frank soon he’d start to see his skin growing tighter, veins showing more prominently. His fangs would elongate, nails would grow and sharpen, these the vampire genes way of trying to survive, making it easier for the host to feed with sharper tools.   
Then, he knew the gene would mutate. In every vampire the gene effects the brain in subtle ways, giving them the instinct, and the way of thinking necessary to feed and kill. But once a vampire was blood starved, it would ramp it up a level, taking over more and more of the conscious mind, urging the vampire to feed, trying to force it, to push the host to get what it needed, urgently. Eventually, the mind would be consumed with that thought, and the host would descend into madness. Depending on who you listened to, the story changed as to whether a vampire could return to sanity if given blood at that point. Some said there was still hope, others said there was none. Once the vampire gene seeped that deep into someone’s mind, there was no going back.   
Gerard could not, would not let it get even close to that point. Especially when he knew that already Frank was in a lot of pain. He knew it from the winces Frank thought he hid so well, from the fleeting touches to his stomach. It was like hunger pains, but so, so much worse. 

When Gerard pushed the door to Frank’s bedroom open again, stepped inside, he realised that Frank was sleeping. Again.   
_He’s so tired. He’s so weak. Why won’t he listen to me?_  
Gerard sat down on the bed, close beside Frank, reached over, brushed back his hair.   
Frank’s lips were slightly pulled back, fangs and teeth visible.   
A few moments staring at those fangs, knowing he’d given those fangs to Frank, that he’d barely used them, the fear that he might not use them again.  
And then a very, very reckless thought entered Gerard’s mind.   
Brushing at Frank’s hair once more, making sure he was still asleep, Gerard pulled him up gently.   
He hesitated, then, trying not to think about what he was doing too much, just like he had before, Gerard bit at his own wrist, and offered the blood to Frank’s parted lips.   
It wasn’t much, but perhaps it could be enough to keep Frank from the brink.   
He knew it was wrong, but it was the only way to keep Frank alive. 

After, Gerard curled up next to Frank, and fell into his own sleep. 

///

Even before he was fully awake, Gerard knew something was very, very wrong.   
He couldn’t move his left arm, or, at least, it felt too heavy, unresponsive. His head was throbbing and there was another, almost numb feeling to his neck, almost like the pain had got so much he couldn’t even feel it anymore.   
It took a few more seconds to register the weight of someone on his back, holding him down.   
A few more seconds after that for everything to piece together.  
The numbness to his neck was due to careless and far too deep bites, the pain to his arm something similar. The weight on his back, it was obvious, was Frank, holding him down, keeping him still while he fed.  
And, Gerard realised, it was the wolf that had woken him, near screaming for it’s alpha, powerless to stop what was happening, and terrified.   
There was some small part of Gerard that was tempted to accept that this was all his own fault anyway. Not just the attack, of course he should’ve realised that a vampire so close to blood starvation would react like this, especially after… After what he had seen Frank could be like.   
But, also, it was his fault any of this had befallen Frank, that he had to deal with being what he was, doing the things he’d done.   
But then the wolf cried out again, begging, pleading.   
_We don’t want this! He doesn’t know what’s happening!_

Very, very nearly, Gerard did not have the strength, not only to fight back, but to overpower.   
Pulling Frank away was horrific, in every way possible. But after that was just as awful. Pushing Frank off, struggling to get him pinned down, held down.   
Gerard waited for the black out that had happened to Frank the previous two times, but it didn’t come.   
_Force the change._ Gerard told the wolf.  
 _BUT-  
DO IT!_

The shaking, contorting and screaming made it all the more difficult to keep Frank restrained, often crying out as the bones shifted and changed where Gerard was holding him down, making it even more painful than usual.   
Eventually though, Gerard was able to back off, and a still trembling black wolf laid itself over his lap, whimpered cries escaping it as it leant against Gerard, getting close to the bites on Gerard’s arm, but careful not to touch them.

Gerard looked down at his arm, quickly looked away again. Even for someone so used to blood, this was horrific. Skin torn back, so many different gashes, so many punctures. So much blood.  
He bent down, kissed the top of the wolf’s head and went into the bathroom to clean up.   
He tried not to look at the mess of his neck and shoulder, concentrating on cleaning and covering it, trying to pretend it wasn’t himself he was treating, as if he was doing it for someone else.   
He came back in and found the wolf still sat on the end of the bed, looking at him sadly.   
The sheets were soaked red in places, the wall by the bed a little speckled.  
He was too tired to deal with it.  
The wolf followed him in to the living room and they laid down together on the couch.  
“I love you so much, Frank, I really do.” 

///

When Frank woke up, he was alone on the couch.   
He couldn’t remember how he’d got there.   
Digging about in his memory, trying to find what the wolf had seen, what it remembered, perhaps it could give him some clues.   
It was slowly that he came to realise, he felt stronger, healthier.  
The taste of blood still in his mouth.  
He’d fed.   
And now he panicked, trying to remember anything of the previous night.   
Just like the other times, there was so little recollection, and that made Frank even more scared. It meant he hadn’t just had some of the supply, he’d actually fed, off someone.   
Finally, the briefest snatch of memory came back to him.  
His bedroom, a body beneath him, they were asleep? His face was buried at their neck, his mouth, chin, nose wet and warm with blood, fangs gnawing further, deeper. A familiar smell, so familiar… A faint sound of a wolf howling, his wolf… Calling, calling for someone… For their alpha.   
For Gerard.  
He nearly fell in his haste to run to the bedroom, begging, pleading that it wasn’t real, wasn’t what he’d thought. His mind was playing tricks, surely. 

He nearly collapsed, burst into tears with relief when he found Gerard, in the bedroom, pulling the bed cover back over the pillows.  
Gerard looked up, at Frank, his own look of relief one that perfectly mirrored Frank.   
“Wasn’t sure when you’d wake up.” Gerard said, opening his arms out to Frank.   
Frank went to go to him, but stopped, suddenly when he noticed the bandage on Gerard’s arm, on his neck, disappearing underneath his tshirt.  
Two hands over Frank’s mouth, his eyes wide, his knees buckled beneath him.  
He didn’t even realise Gerard had caught him before he fell, had guided him over to the bed.   
Now Frank’s eyes went to the bundle that was the old bed sheets that Gerard had just taken off. They were heavily, deeply stained.   
Frank felt his breathing coming short, sobs trying to escape him, getting caught. He bent forward, over almost double.  
Gerard’s hand was on his back, rubbing circles.  
“It’s okay, Frank. Everything’s fine.”   
Frank shook his head.  
“I- I attacked you!”  
There was a silence after this.  
“I’m fine, Frank.”  
Frank looked up, eyes going immediately to the bandages on Gerard’s neck. Once again he shook his head.  
“D- Did. Was it… Gee, I can’t remember what happened. Did it. Did you offer? To begin with.”   
Gerard was silent.  
How was he going to explain this?   
“I… Gave you some blood, while you were sleeping. I’m- I’m sorry, Frank, I know that was wrong but. I couldn’t let you get any worse, any weaker.”   
Frank blinked, slowly, but otherwise did not respond to this.   
“That’s not what I asked, Gee. When I bit you, had you asked me to do that? Did you offer?”   
More silence, and Gerard reached out, took Frank’s hand, gently.  
He wouldn’t look up at Frank.   
The hand not being held went to Frank’s mouth again, and this time the sob escaped. “I- I really did attack you. I- Oh. Fuck.”   
He pulled his hand away, got to his feet, backing slightly away from Gerard as a new, horrific thought came to him.  
“Gerard- I- I didn’t- Please tell me I didn’t-” His gaze darted to the bed, back to Gerard, almost begging him to say his fears weren’t true.  
Gerard looked up, quickly realising what Frank was thinking. “No. No! Frank, no. You didn’t- Frank, you didn’t force yourself on me, sexually. I. Please don’t think that for a second.”   
Frank’s breathing was coming in quick, short gasps. “Oh. Well. That’s something. At least I only attacked you and fed from you and-” Eyes scanning over both bandages now. “And tore you up so bad even a vampire has to bandage themselves up to heal from it.”   
Gerard stood, came close. Frank continued to back away until, finally, he gave in, and fell against Gerard, trying not to cry, a painful choking sound coming from him as he tried to hold back.   
Gerard guided him back to the bed, let him curl up.   
“How- How can you stand to be near me?” Frank asked. “You’ve- you’ve gotta be terrified of me. I- I wouldn’t blame you if you- If you just left.”  
Gerard held him, tight, and kissed his cheek.  
“I could never leave you.” The words were gentle ones, but they came with fierce meaning. 

///

It was late, and Frank had tried to convince Gerard that it was okay, if he wanted to go home, he could. Frank understood if he didn’t feel safe sleeping in the same bed.   
“I’m not afraid of you.” Gerard assured him, once again, kissing him lightly.   
Once again Frank’s eyes scanned over the bandages on Gerard’s arm, neck, and the little of his shoulder he could see, and couldn’t help thinking Gerard was wrong not to be scared. 

Frank could barely sleep, and when he did, his dreams contained things he did not want to see, did not want to remember. Sounds and tastes and other sensations that made him squirm and feel more than uncomfortable in his own skin.   
_I did that. I did all of that… How. How could I do that…_

Frank sat up, rubbing at his eyes, wishing he could just sleep, really, properly sleep. But he knew it wasn’t going to happen. Part of him was scared to sleep, to loose that control. He needed to stay awake, alert, make sure he didn’t hurt Gerard, again.   
He looked over at Gerard, who was peacefully asleep, laying turned towards Frank, careful not to sleep on the bandaged side of his neck.   
A small, dark part of Frank wanted to see under the bandage, see how bad it was, really see the damage he’d caused. He felt like he deserved to have that gory image seared into his brain forever. To know what he’d done.   
Finally, he made himself look away.  
Only to have his heart near jump out of his mouth when he saw something, someone, sitting on the end of the bed.   
Frank pushed himself up more, and moved closer to Gerard protectively.   
But he didn’t dare take his eyes off the end of the bed.   
Sat there, cross legged, smiling very slightly, watching Frank, was himself.  
Impossible as it was, there it was.   
There he was.   
The only immediate difference that could be made out, even in the darkness of the room, was this ‘other’ had eyes that were entirely black.

“Don’t worry.” The other said, somehow surprising Frank once more by the fact his voice sounded exactly, exactly like his own. Somehow he’d expected his voice to sound different.. Darker, deeper. But, it just sounded like him.   
“I’m not going to hurt Gee. And neither are you, again. Last night was… An unfortunate accident. So long as you quit starving yourself of blood, it’ll never happen again.”   
Frank just stared at him, trying, trying to find some way to make this make sense.   
“Who- What are you?”   
The other smiled more, showing off fangs just like Frank’s, along with equally sharp looking other teeth, not pointed exactly, but thin at the ends, like razors.   
“Oh shit, there’s a complicated question.” The other laughed. Then, leaning forward, resting his chin in his hand, his expression turned pensive.   
“Alright, first… I’m you. Or, at least, part of you.”  
Frank’s jaw clenched, his hand reaching out to Gerard, almost needing to assure himself he was still there.   
“You’re the part that does… That makes me do all those things. The part that hurt Gerard.”   
The other shrugged, nodded. “Well… In a way, yes, that’s true. But you gotta know, we’re one and the same. You, me, the wolf.”  
“No!” Frank snapped, “That’s where you’re wrong. I am me. You and the wolf are just… Just fucking piggybacking on my- my soul, my body. You are add ons!”   
The other blinked, rapidly, a flash of green, before the eyes returned to black as he blinked again.   
“You think that’s how this works? That you’re just you and we’re just… Added.”   
More surely than he felt, Frank replied, “Yes.”   
The other grinned, and shook his head, slowly. “No, no, Frankie. That’s not how it goes.”   
He sat up then, moved closer, getting in between Frank and Gerard, eventually settling back, next to Frank now.   
“Let me ask you something else. Do you think that… Just anybody can be a vampire? Or a werewolf?”   
Frank shrugged. “I mean… I guess some aren’t cut out for it but… Yeah. I guess. If you’re- If you’re turned or whatever. Anyone can.”  
“Wrong.” The other said. “Not just anyone. There has to be…” The other clicked his fingers, trying to find the right words. “There’s something in them, dormant. The werewolves and vampires all think they do their own choosing but it’s all bullshit. They are drawn to those that already have it in them, just waiting to be set free.”  
He turned, grinned at Frank.   
Up close, Frank was even more unnerved to see his own face, with those black eyes and impossible teeth.   
“So you’re saying I was always going to be a werewolf? It wasn’t an accident.”   
The other shrugged. “Well. Maybe the way it happened was an accident but, yeah. It was always going to happen.”  
Frank was silent, taking this in, thinking it over, finding it hard to accept, and yet, strangely, it made so much sense.   
“Go on.” The other said. “Ask me about the rest of it.”   
Frank frowned, thinking it all over. “W- Why did Gerard become my alpha? Even though he’s… A vampire, not a wolf.”   
The other clapped his hands. “Great question! You see, that’s because you didn’t just have the potential for wolf-dom, but also for vampirism. Both were all in there, and, eventually, you were going be a mix of both.”  
“But. WHY?!”   
The other got up on his knees then, leaning in close to Frank, so close that Frank wanted to push him away.   
“Why? Why. Because the mix of vampire and werewolf, which would kill anyone, anyone other than you, is the only way to bring me into existence.”   
Edging away, very slightly, Frank managed to be just slightly frustrated, even while still being undeniably scared.   
“I’ll ask again then! What are you?”   
The other grinned.   
“So many things.” He replied. “I’m… A little bit wolf, a little bit vampire. Uhh… Quite a bit demon.” He held up his fingers, ticking them off. “I mean, quite a few demons, really. All mixed up together. Little bit… Incubi.”   
Frank edged further away.   
“You know what an incubus is, right?”   
Frank was close to falling off the bed at this point. He nodded in response, he knew a little at least.   
The other leant in, close to Frank’s ear. “Because, if you’re wondering why, how the sex has gotten even better with Gee. That’s why. And if you’re wondering where that fierce sexuality comes from when you feed, that’s… Partly where. The incubi is usually all about pleasure after all, not rape.”   
Frank swallowed, hard. “W-where does that part come from?”  
The other just smiled. “Some other demon. There are so many names, and they change over time, it’s hard to keep track.”   
“So… You’re saying you’re some kind of… Uber-demon or. Something?”   
Another laugh.   
“Something like that. I am the son of all of them, a product of them. I was created when the human race was born, and I have been waiting ever since. Waiting for the vampire that would alpha a wolf, and a wolf that could host the vampires blood.”  
Frank laughed, shakily. “You’ve been waiting all this time, for Gee and me?”  
The other nodded.   
“I’m no… I’m no chosen one.” Frank said, shaking his head in response.   
The other lent in close, and whispered in his ear. “Yes. You are. And you’d better start accepting it, accepting me or you are going to keep hurting people. I could show you what you’ll do to Gee if you keep on depriving yourself, depriving us, but I think that seeing what we did last night will serve as lesson enough.”  
Frank gripped the bed sheets, jaw clenched, he couldn’t reply, the images of last night were coming quick, fast now, and he found himself crying as they did.   
A hand on his cheek, the odd sensation that it was himself, but not himself.   
“C’mon, Frank. Accept this part of you, stop fighting me, stop fighting yourself. We could be so powerful… And Gerard too. He’s part of all this, he’s just as special, and not just in the way you already know.”   
His hair tucked back behind his ears, and then he opened his eyes. 

///

Gerard found Frank the next morning, sitting with his feet tucked under him on the couch.  
Frank had a mug in his hand.  
It took Gerard a few seconds to realise, to recognise the liquid inside as blood. It’d been so long since he’d seen Frank, voluntarily, drink the stuff. He tried to hide his smile as Frank looked up at him, but the relief he felt was too huge.   
Frank gave him a small smile in response.   
“Gee.” He said, quietly. “There’s, um… There’s something’s I need to talk to you about.” 

Gerard sat, and listened as Frank explained the visit he’d had last night, how there was this other part of him, and how it had come to be. 

“So… There’s a demon inside you now?”   
Frank’s brow furrowed, thinking about this. “Kind of. I think it’s more like… A combination of a lot of demons? But it’s not separate from the wolf, from me, it’s just… It’s just been waiting.”  
“For me to come along and turn you so it could wake up, right?” Gerard said, that guilt creeping in on him again.   
Frank shook his head. “Well, I mean. Yes. But, Gee, it was meant to happen.”   
Gerard leant forward, his hand on Frank’s cheek. “I understand that, I do. I’d just accept it better if I thought you were happy about it.”   
Frank shrugged. “The only part I’m not happy about is… I don’t want to be the way I am when I feed. I can’t- If I do that again, I won’t be able to live with myself anymore. Twice is too much already.” His eyes darted to the bandages that still covered Gerard’s neck, then quickly looked away. “What I did to you was almost more than I can deal with already.”   
Gerard gripped Frank’s hands, tightly, understanding what Frank was saying, hating the very thought.   
“I cannot loose you.” Gerard said, firmly.   
Frank closed his eyes. “I know, but I mean what I say.”  
They let these clear truths hang in the air a while.   
Then, taking in a deep breath, Frank continued. “So. For now I’m going to go back to drinking blood like this.” He held up the now nearly empty mug. “And I’m going to work on figuring out how I can… Hunt. Feed in a way that I feel okay with.”  
He looked up. “I just need to learn a way to control myself. If I can… I don’t want to cause more pain than I need to. I understand that death is part of the vampire’s life, part of my life now, but I don’t need to cause suffering.”   
Gerard nodded, smiling, very slightly, his nerves still obvious.   
“And…” Again, Frank looked away. “I won’t feed from you until I figure it out either. I can’t put you under that kind of risk.”   
It was reluctantly that Gerard agreed to this final statement. 

///

Back when he’d first become a vampire, just after his brother had turned him, Mikey had set himself the task of learning all he could about vampirism, about the history and the lore. Of course some Hollywood myths and the fictional fantasies of many talented (and not so talented) writers had mingled in with the facts, but in the end a lot of things seemed to lead back to the same roots. Even the most bizarre make believes seemed to, in essence, come from somewhere, even if the writer clearly had no idea of this. In his many hours of research (Mikey found that lack of sleep thing very useful at this point of his life), he’d also learnt a lot about other ‘monsters’. Werewolves had been the first to cross his path, and it seemed only logical, given the on going hatred and fights between the two species to find out as much about them as he did about his own kind.   
But Mikey hadn’t stopped there, chasing down any and all creatures and legends he could, even those he felt for sure could not be real.  
Then again, he hadn’t thought vampires could be real until his brother had come home one night, after being missing for days, with fangs in place of his old teeth. 

So, obviously, when Gerard called, explaining what this demon (or whatever it was), had told Frank, Mikey didn’t take long to gather some relevant books and begin looking in to it. 

When he came over later that evening, he was able to confirm that what Frank had been told was true, and he had more information besides. 

“So… It turns out this all started way, way back when humans were just figuring out, you know, how to be humans. Before then, demons and all these other… Beings had pretty much had the run of the place to themselves. Then, along comes the human race and. Well, that’s where things got messy.”  
Gerard nods. “Vampires realised they could feed from them, demons realised they could possess them, werewolves realised they could take human shape, right?”   
“Yeah, I mean, amongst other things. The humans basically became the playthings of everything else.”  
Frank raised his eyebrows. “Doesn’t seem like there’s a lot different there then. I mean… We still feed from them, right?”   
Mikey shook his head. “We do it in secret now, hidden, and carefully. The suggestion is there was nothing hidden about this, everything was out in the open.  
When the vampires started turning more humans than there was left to feed from, and the werewolves were doing the same, some attempting to turn those who were already vampires and vice versa, always failing, that’s when the angels stepped in.”   
Frank blinked.   
“Um. Hold on a second. Angels?”   
Mikey stared at him. “Really, Frank? You get stuck on the idea of angels?”   
“No… I mean. Um… Anyway, carry on.” He waved his hand, and sank back into the couch, his mind spinning with the idea that angels existed. Somehow that was harder to believe than vampires, werewolves, demons and everything else that lurked in the shadows. It was easier to believe in darkness when he’d been part of it for so long, he guessed.   
“So. The angels stepped in, and said that the humans were an important part of earth, needed for the progression of the world, and the demons had to take a step back, they’d had their fun, now it was the humans time to thrive.”   
Gerard laughed, softly. “I bet they didn’t like that.”  
“No. They didn’t. But angels are, apparently, more powerful than any dark force. As much as they didn’t like it, they had to accept the terms. They could go about their business, and they could do what they needed to survive, but they could no longer engulf the humans like they had been.”   
Frank nodded, and shifted a little on the couch, his hand shuffling his hair. “Okay, this much I get… Where do I come in?”   
Gerard glanced at him, in a way amazed that Frank had accepted this ‘other’ self so easily.   
Now, Mikey looked a little uncomfortable, shifting his weight, his eyes not quite able to meet either Frank or Gerard’s.   
“They were allowed one more night of freedom, to do what they wanted before being forced to retreat. Many went about their usual business of feeding, possessing and such. But… One group, led by one vampire, and one werewolf, had other ideas. They gathered as many demons as they could, of all kinds. And… They lured a girl away from her home.”  
Frank swallowed, hard, already guessing where this was going.   
“Unsurprisingly, it doesn’t go into great details but… The implication is clear, all the demons gathered in that group had sex with the girl, and…” Mikey grimaced. “As the book put it - ‘laid their seed inside her’.”  
Frank was staring, straight ahead, his eyes glassy, taking nothing but Mikey’s words in.   
“The girl… She. She gave birth that very night. Of course that was the final trauma that killed her, and, supposedly the baby died not long after it’s mother. But the baby was just a host, a way of bringing something into the world. And, since then… It’s been waiting.”  
Mikey glanced up, briefly at Frank.  
“Waiting for me.” Frank said, flatly.   
Mikey nodded, slowly.   
Gerard’s hand was gripping Frank’s tightly.   
“When… When he said he was the ‘product’ of all those demons he… He meant it literally.” Frank said, thinking the words through, carefully.   
Mikey nodded.   
Gerard’s other hand clasped around Frank’s and his own, squeezing tight. “Why Frank? Why was he the one?”  
“I told you that already, Gee.” Frank said, quietly, flatly. “Because I was able to be both vampire and werewolf.”  
“But why?” Gerard insisted.   
“Because of both of you.” Mikey answered, drawing both of theirs attentions back to him. “It isn’t just Frank, it’s you too, Gee.”   
Gerard shook his head. “I know, I know this is because I turned him but-”  
“No.” Mikey interrupted, eyes closed as he tried to stay patient. “It isn’t just that. Gee… The lore says that the only way to bring this… Being into life, is through a combination of vampire and werewolf, since it was a vampire and werewolf that set the thing in motion. And supposedly, the vampire was the first to, um, ‘lay down’ with the girl, and the werewolf was the last.   
It says that… A powerful couple is needed, that are dedicated to one another, enough to take the risks. And that both sides, both the vampire and the wolf need to be strong in order to bring this being about.”   
Gerard shook his head. “There’s nothing special about me, I’m just-”  
“Gerard.” Mikey interrupted, steadily. “You turned me when you were barely turned yourself. You know that’s unheard of.”  
Gerard shrugged. “You’re my brother, I thought that-”  
“You picked up everything you were taught, quicker than anyone else, and figured out more by yourself besides. Your first kill, it was clean and it was simple. No screw ups.”  
Gerard blinked, his mind racing. “I- I just waited until I was ready, I-”  
“Gerard! You turned out to be a fucking alpha for a fucking werewolf! Now stop arguing with me and accept that you’re special, and chosen and just as much a part of this as Frank is!”   
Gerard pulled his arms around Frank, and drew him close, Frank let him, easily. His eyes still blank, still trying to take this all in.   
There was silence, as they all tried to let this sink in.   
“But Gee isn’t the one… The one with this being.” Frank eventually broke the silence, shakily. “This… Product of… Mass rape at a demon party at the beginning of the world.”  
“Frank.” Mikey said, gently. “It doesn’t say… It doesn’t say anywhere that it was rape.”  
“It doesn’t have to!” Frank snapped. “Even if! Even if that girl was willing to sleep with the first one, the vampire, what the hell makes you think she was still having a good time by the time it got to the wolf, huh? We don’t know how many fucking demons and shit there were, but I know it was a lot. And- And even if I didn’t know that- I- What I feel, when I feed? I know that is all to do with that. What I do then, what I become, is that fucking thing. And it’s- It’s like I can feel the surge of all of them, I didn’t know it then, but I recognise it now. That is why I can’t stop, why I- Why I hurt my victims like I do. It’s because of how it was created.”  
He paused, rubbing his hands over his face.  
“It’s so fucking primal. I thought I knew what that meant, before, when it was me and Gerard, when he’d pull the alpha card and I’d tingle with this rush of… Raw, old, primal feeling.   
When I feed, that’s more primal than anything. But it doesn’t feel good.”  
He paused, bowed his head.  
“Not afterwards it doesn’t, anyway.”   
He closed his eyes.

After a little while, Gerard looked up at Mikey. “Is there anything else you can tell us?”   
Mikey hesitated, then shook his head. “That’s everything I have, right now anyway.”  
Gerard nodded. “Thanks, Mikey.”  
Frank nodded an agreement.   
Mikey looked between both of them, and tried to smile reassuringly. “This is all going to work out guys, you know that, right? We’ll get a handle on this.”

///

They’d tried to keep themselves from the temptation of having sex, again. Knowing that sex and feeding came basically hand in hand for them, it was best to avoid both until Frank knew, understood more on how to control himself.   
But the kisses grew too hot, and hands couldn’t keep from wandering. Giving in was always on the cards, whether they chose to acknowledge it or not.   
“Pin me down.” Frank pleaded as they hurriedly pushed at one another’s clothes, quickly naked. “Pin my hands down and- And don’t let me near enough to bite you.”  
Gerard smirked, “Knew you had a kink or two hiding in there somewhere.”  
Frank whined, softly. “Fuck off Gee, this isn’t about kinks, it’s about keeping me from hurting you!”  
Gerard leant down, grabbing both of Frank’s hands, pushing them back against the pillow, either side of Frank. He kissed Frank’s ear softly. “Aww. Puppy thinks he can hurt me?” Gerard teased.  
“Quit it.” Frank whimpered, then, feeling that old sensation of fangs lightly scratching his skin, his breath picked up a little more, hitching.   
“Do it.” He said, his voice barely a whisper. Gerard shook his head. “It’s not fair to tempt you like this.” Still, his mouth stayed close to Frank’s skin, giving away his unwillingness to move.   
“Bite me, please.”  
Gerard grinned, just slightly. “Still such a bite freak.”   
And, finally, he gave in.

At first it seemed they’d nearly forgotten about sex, but when Gerard finally raised his head, it was the only thing on either of their minds. Kissing shortly, hotly.   
“More.” Frank gasped.   
Gerard kissed him softly. “I give you much more baby I’ll-”  
“Please.”  
This was followed by pleas for Gerard to go faster, harder.   
Frank closed his eyes, let his neck arch, hands gripping the hands that still held him down.  
And as that cresting feeling came, something flickered in his mind. An image. A dark cave, lit by fire, shadows and sounds of many beings all inhabiting a small space. Loud, female moans of pleasure. But the focus was not on her. It was on two other beings. Without having to wonder, he knew it was the vampire and the werewolf, the creators of the plan, of the being that had been waiting for Frank.   
The two of them were standing there, completely naked, kissing passionately.   
And in that moment, Frank understood, those two, those first two, had been in love.   
And, just for a moment, Frank forgot to be afraid of it. 

///

He wasn’t surprised, much, much later that night, when he found the other perched on the end of the bed again.   
“So. Been doing some research on us, huh?” The other asked, grinning slightly.  
Frank sat up, “I figured that was sensible. To understand what’s happening to me, I have to understand you.”  
The other nodded. “And now you know how I was ‘born’.”  
Frank closed his eyes, briefly. “I do.”  
“You feel sorry for her, don’t you, the girl who gave birth to the child that night?”  
Frank looked up at him then, still, still shocked as ever to see his own face looking back. “Of course I feel sorry for her! She was mass raped by a bunch of demons and died giving birth to- to you.”   
The other rolled his eyes. “For some reason everyone thinks all demons are about inflicting pain… Yes. Some of them would’ve hurt her that night, I cannot deny that. But some of them would have made her feel pleasures like nothing she’d ever known before.”  
He paused, grinned. “Especially since she was a virgin before that night.”  
Frank grimaced, held back a retching sound.  
“I know, cliché, but where do you think the cliché comes from, huh? But come ON! You know it’s true. I told you one was an incubus, there was a vampire, and, well…” The other leant over, close to Gerard, running his fingers briefly through Gerard’s hair. “You know how good sex with a vampire is.”   
Frank hit the others’ hand away from Gerard. “Don’t touch him.” He hissed.   
“Speaking of incubi.” The other continued, as if Frank hadn’t said anything. “You do know that incubus are, by nature, bi-gendered, right? The succubus and the incubus are one and the same. Guess what that means.”  
Frank’s turn to roll his eyes. “Let me guess, we can grow out our hair and get our nails done?”   
The other just grinned. “You can do that anyway.” He pointed out. “All I’m suggesting is maybe you and Gee should be a little more… Careful when he’s fucking you.”  
Frank’s brow furrowed now, trying to figure this out. “What do you mean?”   
The other shrugged. “I mean, you don’t want to wind up in the difficult situation of getting pregnant now, do you?”   
Frank stared at him, wide eyed, barely daring to blink.   
He had to be lying.   
How many times had he and Gerard had sex since he’d been turned… None of those times had they even considered protection, it wasn’t needed. They couldn’t get sick, couldn’t pick up diseases like humans. This hadn’t even- How could they even predict this?   
Without meaning to, or even realising he was doing it, Frank’s arms wrapped around his stomach.   
And with that the other burst out laughing, nearly falling backwards off the bed.   
“Oh shit. I’m sorry, I was only fucking with you on that one.”   
Frank dropped his arms and glared at the other.   
“Fuck you.” He muttered.   
The other was still laughing.   
“I’m sorry. Didn’t I mention one of our fathers was a trickster? It’s all part of what makes us.”   
Frank slumped back down, having had enough of listening for one night, done with thinking about this.


	5. Yes My Eyes Are Burning Red

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A possible solution? Or just another complication?   
> Gerard wants to be able to access The Other, but he might not be prepared for what he finds. 
> 
> Minimal gore in this one, but quite a lot of sexual content...

When Mikey got back to the vampire home, he went back to the books, again. Wanting to find if there was more, if there was any indication as to the purpose of this being. Did it just want life? Was that the plan? Or was there something more?  
All the while he was trying to distract himself from the one thing he’d found, that he hadn’t relayed back to Frank and Gerard.   
It was an account in a diary, roughly a hundred years previous. Evidently it was a time when creatures of the night still listened to the old lore’s. The diary had belonged to a young vampire, not long turned, the diary kept to detail his settling into his new life, and the things unfolding around him.   
It told of one of the members of his clan, and how he saw this vampire with a werewolf, and how he knew this was wrong, but never thought anything of it.   
Until the night the vampire and the werewolf were dragged, in chains, back to the vampire home. 

_‘There was a great commotion, and at first I ignored it. Many nights can be rowdy here, as I have explained before. Sometimes I almost wish sleep came a little easier to me still.  
Then there was a pounding on my door, and Stefan told me I had to come, that everyone must witness this.   
I didn’t ask, as I have already found, you learn nothing from asking here, only from watching and discovering by yourself.  
In the great hall, all the vampires of our clan were gathered, and, stood in the centre was Master, and, I did not see at first, but tied to the two pillars at that part of the room, were Eli, and the werewolf I had seen him with.  
Both were chained and bloody, the wounds on Eli so deep and many that he was not healing from it.   
There was no explanation, it was not needed, we all knew their relationship was wrong, an abomination and filthy. I understood why we were all made to witness this, though I felt it unnecessary on my part. I certainly had no plans to take up relations with a wolf.   
Eli was crying, saying he was sorry, they’d meant no harm, they wouldn’t see one another again.   
The usual violence ensued and I looked away. I’ve seen it all before and really am already quite bored by it. This is why I so much prefer hunting… There’s an elegance to that.   
Master spoke, at last, and explained that in order to protect the clan, to protect the world at large, he was to sacrifice one of his own.  
Eli protested once more, saying that they weren’t planning anything, the wolf was not going to be turned.  
This made little sense to me, as everyone knows wolves cannot be made into vampires, nor vice versa. Perhaps this was delusions after going through so much pain?   
These wild protests and sobs were unheeded of course, and as we watched, the wolf was sliced from navel to throat, blood spilling everywhere, making all the clan twitchy and wanting.   
Then the head was removed, cleanly, as only Master could do, and thrown at Eli’s feet.   
Master stepped back then, and allowed the clan to come forward, to take what it would of the wolf’s blood before it became too dead and cold to fulfil any of them.  
I hung back, I’ve heard enough of how vile wolf blood is, I have no wish to discover first hand.   
After the clan had their fill, Eli was unchained, and taken away. I knew where. The light room. He’d be dead once morning came.   
I confess I could not comprehend his tears and wails over the dead wolf, he seemed to have little care that he was to die also.   
But then, I’ve already been told I am a little cold when it comes to matters of the heart._

Mikey found himself more than glad that the lore had been forgotten over the course of time.  
This much older clan had seen the potential of this being that now lived in Frank, and it had destroyed any chance of it.   
It was all, all too easy for Mikey to imagine his brother in the place of that vampire, so long ago, and Frank in the place of that wolf.  
He remembered, well enough, the cruel way the clan had treated Frank when he’d first come here. Now he realised they were lucky it had not been worse.   
What had it been that this older clan had been so afraid of? What did they know about this being that Mikey, and more importantly, Frank and Gerard, didn’t?   
He kept on with his search, trying to find answers to that unsettling question. 

///

Once again, Frank explained that the other had visited him, even though he hadn’t provided any new information.   
Gerard smiled, just a little, but nervously. “Is it bad that I kinda… Wish I could talk to… This other part of you?”   
Frank chewed his lip. “I don’t know if it’s bad, but… I don’t think it’s possible.” He considered this, the fact that the only, only way he and the other had contact had been through… Dreams? Was it? Not quite dreams, more solid than that. But it wasn’t like the wolf, they didn’t communicate in the same way.   
Gerard shrugged, trying to seem like he didn’t care, either way. Even though he did, he really did. “I suppose I’m just… So used to being connected to you, in every way. This just feels like. I guess it feels like now there’s a part of you that… I’m missing.”   
Frank smiled, very slightly.   
“If it’s any consolation, it feels like there’s a part of me I’m missing too.”   
Gerard reached out to him, and hugged him. 

///

They went out that night, both feeling restless. They needed to get out of the apartment. Even just for a little while.   
And, though he wouldn’t say it out loud, even to, especially to, Frank, Gerard needed to hunt. Had been needing it a few nights now, but putting it off. At least now he had the excuse.   
They avoided both places they’d been for Frank’s bloody hunts. Went to a new place, one that Gerard had overheard some of the other vampires talking about before. It was a young crowd, and, though it was deceitful, the fact was the young were always easier to persuade into darker deeds. Especially those frequenting a place such as this one, loud and dark. They were looking for any way to rebel, to stand out, to prove their maturity with childish acts of recklessness. 

Frank knew, without needing to ask, why they’d come here. Gerard held his hand tightly as they sat up at one of the tables, and Frank watched as his eyes scanned the beautiful, carelessly dressed crowd. So much skin was on show, even Frank felt tempted by the pull of them.  
But then images of violence, blood and screams entered his mind. The feeling that his body was out of his control…   
And that quickly shut down any feelings of trying again.   
Not tonight, not until he understood better. 

Gerard’s hand steadily tightened on Frank’s, he was leaning slightly forward in his seat, and Frank knew, knew what Gerard wanted, needed. He’d clearly spotted someone and every instinct was telling him to go, to hunt, to seduce, to feed. The hand in Frank’s was the only thing stopping him. He didn’t want to leave without permission, and, it dawned on Frank, that for once Gerard didn’t know where to find those words to ask for it.   
Frank leant in, kissed Gerard’s cheek, then nuzzled his neck, brushing back his hair a little.   
“It’s okay.” He said into Gerard’s ear. “You can go, I can tell you need it.” Gerard didn’t reply, though he turned to look at Frank. He looked concerned, conflicted.   
Frank kissed him again, on the lips this time. “I’ll be fine.” He assured. “I’ll wait right here, come find me after?”   
Gerard smiled, and seemed to sigh in relief. He reached out, hand reaching into Frank’s hair, he kissed him deeply. And then, all at once, his lips, his hand was gone as he left, quickly. As if he didn’t trust himself to stay longer. 

Frank didn’t watch to see who Gerard had gone after. Not out of jealousy, but because, really, it didn’t matter. This was the vampire way of life, he knew it, this part no longer bothered him.   
He sat for a while, finishing his drink. A few people came up to him, slid into the seat Gerard had occupied, tried to start up conversations with him. Frank just smiled and shook his head, deterring them. Was this something to do with being a vampire too? Could they sense it, did he pull them in? He didn’t know. He only knew that if they had any real idea of what awaited them, they’d stay clear away. 

Eventually, though he’d promised Gerard otherwise, Frank left his spot, and went wandering.   
Without realising it, he went in search of Gerard. He’d never seen Gerard feed on anyone else, and, it was an odd curiosity that pulled him to see, to find out what vampire feeding should look like. 

There was a downstairs to this place, it turned out, hidden away at the back of the main floor. He could feel, sense that was where Gerard was.  
Frank was only half way down the stairs when the unmistakable sounds of pleasure drifted up to him.   
A heat crept over him, but not a pleasant one. Not jealous, remember?   
His footsteps were slower now, quieter.   
Eventually he reached a point where he could see down, and he paused there, crouching low in an effort not to be seen.   
This level was roughly a quarter of the size of upstairs, and just as dark, though there was no music down here, only what managed to permeate down through the ceiling. A total of four booths, all circular, and all but one were empty. The booths curled around the staircase, which was against the wall.   
Gerard was in the one almost opposite the stairs.   
At first, Frank glanced away, quickly, before he could take in any details, tempted just to return upstairs, forget his thoughts of understanding vampire feeding better. Forget he’d seen anything.   
His eyes rested instead on Gerard’s jacket, which was on the floor by the booth, carelessly thrown there. And, slowly, his gaze wandered back up, to where Gerard was. 

It was a guy he’d chosen tonight.   
Frank wondered what the ratio was, how often it was a guy, how often it was a girl for Gerard. So far Frank’s own track record had exclusively been girls, when it came to hunting. He became, briefly, fleetingly aware that he and Gerard had never discussed their own sexualities. Though it was clear that Gerard understood that Frank was bisexual (given that he’d brought a girl for Frank to feed from), Frank realised he had only assumed the same was true for Gerard. 

They were faced towards the stairs, the boy beneath Gerard, on his back. Gerard had his face buried in the boys neck, and Frank could smell blood.   
The boy was moaning, loudly, carelessly, his hands gripping at Gerard’s shirt, at his hair.   
The boys jeans and underwear were on the floor. Gerard was stroking the boys hair, his other was lower down, clearing stroking something else.  
This was quick, hurried, dirty, a hook up as far as the boy was concerned, no idea that this would be his last ever.   
Frank’s gaze returned and focused on the top of Gerard’s head, his hair slightly damp from sweat, knowing that Gerard’s fangs were latched onto the boys skin, his mouth filled with blood, lips wet with it.   
He stared, and stared. His own fangs beginning to ache. Wanting, needing. He felt hot in an entirely other way now. At the same time his skin tingled, especially around the blurring scars around his neck and shoulders, from all the times Gerard had bitten him. His hand gripped at the edge of the stairs, his body telling him it wanted different things. He wanted to feed, he wanted to be fed from.  
And oh God, and he wanted to fuck.   
He kept his hands gripped to the stairs, tighter, tighter now. Not sure what he’d do if he let go. The blood in him rushing, every vampiric instinct kicking in, urging him. And, down deeper inside, he could feel, hear those demons, that other stir. 

Gerard lifted his head then, eyes still closed. His lips painted red with blood, and Frank envied how neat he could be when feeding. Gerard’s tongue swiped around his mouth, then, slowly his eyes opened.   
The irises were wider than Frank remembered seeing, and dark, deep red. Usually they were a bright red after feeding from Frank.   
Immediately his focus was on Frank. And Gerard’s already parted lips opened wider, in shock, perhaps in embarrassment, fear that Frank might hate what he was seeing.   
Gerard was panting, softly, obviously trying to get himself back in control. Still Frank couldn’t stop staring, couldn’t untangle all the thoughts and feelings he had for what he was seeing.   
Every fibre of him felt needy. His lips were parted because it felt almost like his fangs were elongating. And, it was undeniable now, he was hard and, genuinely, he had no idea what to do about that.   
Gerard was looking at him, eyes searching, trying to understand Frank’s reaction, trying to work it out.   
Finally, Frank slowly nodded. “It’s okay.” He mouthed, slowly.   
Still, Gerard seemed unsure. The boy beneath him squirming, mewling, begging him to carry on.   
Slowly, Frank loosened his grip on the stairs, and let one hand slowly, purposefully, and clearly enough for Gerard to see, to understand what he was doing, unbuckle his belt, undo his jeans, and let his hand slip down.  
His eyes closed as he finally allowed one of his aching urges some kind of relief.   
Much to the boys delight, Gerard was finally satisfied that Frank was okay with what was happening, and let his hand move once again. His head lowered to the boys neck again.  
Frank opened his eyes, and scooted closer to the edge of the stairs, leaning in, watching Gerard intently, all the while his hand touching himself, slightly faster. 

The boy moaned loudly, deeply, his entire body shaking beneath Gerard, and then, almost immediately after, went completely limp. Gerard raised his head again, lips once more smattered with blood, and the boys head lolled to the side. His eyes didn’t open. 

Gerard pushed himself up, wincing a little as he pulled himself out, climbed off the boy.   
He was hard, Frank instantly noted.   
Gerard looked up at Frank, and smiled, weakly.   
Frank hurriedly got to his feet, doing his jeans up once again and dashed down the stairs. 

Gerard held his arms out to Frank and enveloped him tightly in an embrace, stroking his hair.   
“I wasn’t expecting you to see that.” Gerard said, softly.   
Frank shook his head. “Neither was I.”   
Gerard kissed his forehead. “You okay? With… It?”   
Frank looked up, nodded. “I understand it.”   
“Because I’d get it, completely if you said you felt weird about it, or jealous or-”  
Frank smiled, slightly. “I understand it.” He repeated.   
Gerard held him tighter, and kissed his hair. 

Gerard pulled back a little, stroked back Frank’s hair.   
He smiled, and, perhaps Frank was imagining it, but he thought the smile looked a little proud.   
Frank laughed, softly as Gerard’s finger traced under Frank’s eyes. “What?” He asked.   
Gerard’s smile grew, and he leaned in, kissed Frank’s eyelids as he instinctively closed them.   
“Your eyes have turned a little red.” Gerard explained. “Like you want to feed. I don’t know why… But. It makes me feel kinda… Proud.” He nuzzled against Frank’s neck.   
Frank’s breath hitched slightly. Realising that the aches and wants hadn’t really gone away, they’d merely dulled a little.   
“I did.” He said, quietly. “I do.” He added, more honestly.   
Gerard looked up, searching those eyes now. Then he glanced back, at the boy.   
Frank froze, realising what Gerard was thinking.   
“He’s not… Quite dead.” Gerard explained, carefully. “He’s nearly dead, unconscious, and bleeding out. But, he’s still safe to feed from, for now.”   
Frank gripped Gerard’s hands, feeling scared.  
Gerard smiled, just a little, and kissed his cheek. “Whatever you do to him Frank, he won’t feel it now anyway. It won’t matter. You can’t hurt him.”

Frank wasn’t so sure about that.   
But, before he could voice his trepidation, Gerard was already leading him over to where the boy was laying. 

They got close, and Frank felt his mind blur with an intense, pulsing need. Fangs almost hurting now, and his eyes felt wide.   
Gerard guided him to kneel down, beside the boy, level with his neck. It only had a little blood smeared around it, the punctures neat. Once again, Frank felt envious and amazed at how clean and careful Gerard was when he fed.   
Gerard knelt behind him, scooting Frank up onto his lap, his arm wrapping around Frank’s waist.   
Frank could feel him, feel the warmth of new blood in his body. And, more noticeably, he could feel Gerard’s hardness, his arousal still obvious, pressing into Frank’s lower back.   
Gerard’s hand brushed at Frank’s cheek, pulling back his hair a little.   
“It’s okay baby, take your time.” He said.   
Frank looked over the boy, noticed his very, very shallow breathing, and the slight warmth that still radiated from his body. It was true, what Gerard had said, the boy was still alive, he had time.   
There was a thrill in knowing he was going to finish what Gerard had started, like this was something shared. A shared kill.   
How romantic.   
He licked his lips, slowly, and leant down. At first he let his lips brush over where the little bit of blood had trailed from the wounds, licking, slowly, the spike of adrenaline shooting through him as the blood touched his tongue, entered his system. Then, leaning closer, he let his mouth open more, let his fangs find the wounds Gerard had made, let his own penetrate the same spot, something so intensely erotic, and at the same time, comfortingly familiar.   
Blood filled his mouth quickly, and Frank let out a soft, muffled moan, moving closer, pressing his mouth, fangs deeper.  
He could feel Gerard behind him, the arm still wrapped around his waist, a hand clutching his own. Gerard kissed his cheek, his ear, his neck, nuzzling softly. Hushed words whispered in his ear, telling him how good Frank was doing, how proud he was.   
And Gerard pressed close, closer to him, the new angle of Frank leaning forward meaning his ass was more exposed. And Gerard took advantage of that, pressing, rubbing against him, through the layers of both their clothes, making no move to remove any layers. Frank didn’t mind, he was aware, somewhere in the back of his mind that perhaps, once upon a time he would have thought this sick, wrong. His boyfriend using him to get off while a boy died at their hands. But so much, so much had changed, it didn’t matter. This was the way of things.   
Hunters and prey. Was it their fault that hunting got them worked up?   
Frank lifted his mouth, and made a new mark, a new wound, going deeper, burying his face in it. Vaguely aware he was loosing control, knowing it wasn’t as bad as before. His hand squeezed Gerard’s tightly as the urge to loose himself in the blood started to overwhelm. He wanted it, wanted it. Wanted more. Another wound, more blood. It covered his chin, his nose, his cheeks, his hair straying into it. Another kiss from Gerard placed on his cheek. Telling him again that he was doing okay, he was doing fine, not to worry.   
It calmed him a little, and he swallowed, sucking at the wounds already created, cleaning off the mess of blood which surrounded them. 

He reached his hand down, to his jeans, undoing them again, trying to tug them down, awkwardly though it was.  
Gerard’s hand on his. Then at his crotch.   
“Do you want this?” Gerard asked, softly, rubbing him very gently.   
Frank raised his head, briefly, dripping blood. He shook his head.   
He pushed himself back a little, adding pressure where Gerard had already been rubbing himself against Frank.  
Gerard kissed his ear, then whispered. “Yes. Okay.”   
Frank lowered his mouth again, taking in yet more blood, letting it fill him, take over him. Then, he felt Gerard press closer still, this time no fabric boundaries in the way. Head spinning as he felt Gerard inside him.  
The boy’s blood was getting cooler now, and Frank knew, on instinct to stop. He stopped to take a little more, when Gerard pulled him back, sensing the closeness of death too. Frank let himself be pulled away, and gave himself over to the other pleasure, his head tipping back, eyes closed, mouth open. He could feel he was soaked with blood. Gerard’s fingers traced over his chin, his lips, and placed those fingers in Frank’s mouth to suck, before pulling Frank further back, kissing his mouth, deeply, taking his second fill of the same blood.

After they came, they fell back, onto the hard floor, panting hard. Both messy with blood now, though Frank more so. Gerard rolled onto his side, and stared into Frank’s eyes, kissing his eyelids again.   
“Red suits you.” Gerard said, softly. Frank smiled, looking at Gerard’s eyes, seeing the similar red hue to what he knew must be in his own. Then he grinned as he saw the blood streaking Gerard’s lips, the trail of it down his cheek made by Frank’s fingers. “You too.” He said.   
Gerard kissed him, then got to his feet, announcing he was going to ‘deal with the body’. Frank made no protest. He merely fixed his jeans once more, wiped, lazily at his face and let his eyes close. Waited for Gerard to return. 

///

Now, they knew something new. Frank could keep control when feeding, but only if he also had Gerard there, physically right there, in order to channel his excess urges into.   
It was an uncomfortable conversation when he attempted to explain this to Mikey, who’d, once again, come to them with updates on his research into the being residing in Frank. 

Mikey tried to hide the way his nose wrinkled at the information. “But you were able to feed, successfully? Without doing undue damage to the human?”   
Frank nodded. Blushing heavily as he remembered the full situation.   
Mikey frowned, then shrugged. “Well, I guess that’s the best we can hope for, for now anyway.”   
Frank stared at him, wide eyed. “What?! Mikey! This is… Huge! I kept control, for the first ever time while feeding from a human.” He frowned, slightly, the disappointment in Mikey’s lack of enthusiasm obvious.   
“Yes, yeah. It is. It is a big deal, but…”   
“Mikey.” Gerard interrupted, letting his hand drop from where it had rested on Frank’s shoulder. “Can we have a minute?” 

The two brothers slipped into the kitchen.   
And very soon Frank felt hot with embarrassment. 

“He’s trying his best, we both are, at least give him that, Mikes.”  
“I am! I did! I acknowledged it was a big step, didn’t I?”   
“Mikey…”  
“Look, forgive me if I don’t see this as the big solution to the problems like you and Frank apparently do.”  
“It is a solution.”   
“It’s a shitty one, and you know it!”   
“I think it works perfectly.”   
A strangled, frustrated growl punctured the air, so obviously coming from Mikey.   
“How can you think that?! He has to have you feed from the victim first, effectively starting the job, and then he needs you to-to-”  
The voice lowered, but not enough. “Then he needs you having sex with him, just so he can keep those urges in check, so that he doesn’t violently sexually assault his prey.”   
There was a pause.  
“But.” Mikey finally said, with a sigh. “I will agree. It is huge that you’ve found a solution, of any kind. Just, so long as you understand, it can only be a temporary one.”   
“If it needs to be, it can be permanent.”   
“Gerard!”  
“You know it might be the only solution we ever have.”   
A heavy sigh, and then the brothers returned.   
It was all Frank could do to stop himself from getting up and leaving.   
Gerard’s arm around him as he sat back next to Frank made him change his mind very quickly, however. 

They spoke no more on the subject, Mikey instead moving on to what he’d discovered.   
“Gerard mentioned a few times about wanting to… Communicate with this other part of you. So, I took a little detour in my research to see if I could find anything on that.”   
Frank shook his head. “Not possible. I only get contact in these weird… Dreams. There’s no way-”  
“Dreams aren’t quite as impenetrable as you might think, Frank.” Mikey said, with a small smile.   
At this, Gerard lent forward, eyes wide, shining with hope, expectation. “You found something?”   
Mikey inclined his head, and picked up one of the books he’d brought over. Flicking to a page he’d marked, and then holding it out for Gerard to see.   
“Make sure you read that through carefully before you attempt it. But, yeah, that should work.”   
Gerard took the book, scanning over the page, then looking up at Frank, smiling widely.   
He didn’t seem to notice the look of hesitation, of uncertainty in Frank’s eyes. 

///

“Gee… I’m not. I’m not sure we want to do this.”   
Gerard didn’t look up from the book Mikey had given him earlier.   
Mikey had gone home hours before, and most of the time since then had seen Gerard, sat on the floor of Frank’s room, book open in front of him, as he read, and re-read over the passage in question.   
“Gerard!” Frank snapped. “Are you listening to me?”   
“Hmm?”   
Frustrated, Frank sat down opposite, and slammed his hands down over the book, spreading his fingers out so he was covering as much of the pages as possible.   
Now, finally, Gerard looked up.   
He had the dazed, faraway look of someone who’d been in their own world too long, and had been snapped back to reality unwillingly. Frank looked him square in the eyes.   
“Gerard. Listen. I need you to understand, what you are trying to communicate with, it’s not. It’s not like the wolf. It’s not… He’s not sweet, and submissive.”  
Gerard let the corner of his lips quirk slightly. “Your wolf isn’t always all that sweet, Frank. You forget I’ve seen him in action too.”   
Frank rolled his eyes, sighed, heavily. “Yes, because he was protecting the pack, protecting YOU!”  
He grabbed Gerard’s hands now. “Listen. Please, listen to me. If there is any part of you that is afraid of what you’ve seen, when I feed, understand that is what you will be face to face with. The son of… Of all those demons.”  
He pushed the book away, and scooted closer to Gerard. “Gee. Mikey told you how it was created. You understand what it is, don’t you?”   
Gerard nodded. Then leant forward, and kissed Frank’s cheek. “It’s still a part of you though. That’s what matters to me.” 

So, that was how, half an hour later, they found themselves sat on Frank’s bed, Frank, once again asking Gerard what he needed to do.   
With a small smile, Gerard pushed Frank down to lie on his back. “I’ve told you, all you have to do, is fall asleep, easy!”  
Once again, Frank sat up. “Don’t you think we should… I dunno, draw a pentagram or something, make sure he doesn’t… Get loose or something?”   
Gerard rolled his eyes, pushing Frank back, again. “No, it states quite clearly that you only need a pentagram for this sort of thing if the demon in question doesn’t have another tether. Which, you know, it’s been made pretty clear it can’t survive without you.”  
Frank nodded. “Okay. Okay. Sure. Um. Gee?”  
“Mmm?”  
“I feel kinda… Strange… Laying here with you watching me. Could you maybe… Just… Lie next to me? Just until I fall asleep?”  
Gerard smiled, then settled himself down, wrapping an arm around Frank. Frank shifted, until he was fully comfortable, snuggled close against Gerard.   
“And Gee?” Frank said, quietly, interrupting the silence that had filled the room.   
“Yeah?”   
“Be careful, okay?”  
Gerard kissed his forehead, lingering a few seconds. “I promise.”

When Frank was fully asleep, Gerard carefully untangled himself, and sat up.   
Now it was coming to it, Gerard had to admit, he was nervous. Not of this being, he felt confident that there was no part of Frank that could ever, willingly, do him harm.   
_The weight of something, someone on his back, pain so intense it had become numb, and red seeping in to his vision._  
He forced himself to forget when Frank had attacked him, knowing that was more vampire survival instinct, and less this demon, no matter what Frank might try and protest. 

He picked up the book again, and read over the words one final time, before, carefully and slowly, speaking them aloud.   
He did not understand the language, but he could feel the power behind them. He kept his mind calm, and as clear as he could while speaking, just like the book told him.  
Then, at the crucial point, he bent down on the floor, to the candle he’d placed there (Frank had told him there was no way he was getting that candle near the bed, it was just asking for a house fire to start). Lit it, then, just as the wick caught, blew it out again.   
A second later, the flame caught again, and Gerard couldn’t help but stare. 

“Well… This is different.”   
At the sound of his voice, Gerard looked up to where Frank was laying.  
Where he had been laying.   
Frank was no longer on the bed, and Gerard felt suddenly cold, terrified.   
What had he done?   
“Guess again, beautiful.”   
Now Gerard looked behind him, and saw, perched on the very end of the bed…  
He was so much like Frank, exactly like Frank, physically, but immediately Gerard could sense something very different coming from him. Like a sharper, louder, more intense version of everything he’d been able to feel from Frank since he’d been turned.   
So this was the demon that resided in Frank? That had been waiting just for him… Since the beginning of everything.   
Gerard pushed himself up, slowly, cautiously onto the bed, never taking his eyes off… What had Frank called him? ‘The Other’.   
He smiled at Gerard, very carefully giving Gerard the smallest glimpse of those impossible teeth.   
It was the eyes that unsettled Gerard more, the pure inky blackness too them, he had to be careful about the angle that he looked at him, otherwise it looked too much like Frank had been blinded, too much for him to consider.   
The other smiled at him, clearly enjoying the reaction. “I can see, in case you’re wondering.” He said.   
He can read minds. Gerard noted, wondering how much Frank could potentially harness, and use himself.   
“The blackness of my eyes have no effect on my sight. But, would you prefer something different?”   
As he watched, Gerard saw the others eyes slowly change, still maintaining the black around the outside, while the irises lightened and turned a startling green.  
“More visually pleasing?” The other asked.   
Gerard could not think of a thing to say.   
The other chuckled.   
“Well now, I know you didn’t call on me just to stare at my eyes… What got you curious enough to call me out, Gee?”  
Then, he leant forward slightly, and edged a little closer.   
“Fuck. This is intense… Being in direct contact with you. Alpha, master, creator. You’re the one who gave me my way in.” The other closed his eyes, head tipping back slightly, as if he were breathing Gerard in. “I understand why he’s so protective of you… And why his skin tingles at the slightest touch.”  
Gerard swallowed. “Do you know everything Frank does?”   
The other smiled, opening his eyes again. “I’m part of him, just like the wolf. We always know what he’s doing, just depends on how much we feel like paying attention.”  
Gerard blushed, very slightly. And the other chuckled. “Are you going shy that I’ve witnessed the two of you having sex?”  
Gerard said nothing.  
And, of course, the other laughed again. “Don’t be embarrassed, Gee. Shit, I wish he said half the things that run through his head while you have sex… You’d turn the deepest red.”   
Gerard chose to ignore this. “So, you can see what he does, and hear what he thinks… Do you ever…”  
“Frank is a lot stronger than you think.” The other interrupted. “And, I have more than my share of respect for him, so, no, I do not force my will upon him. The Frank you had before you turned him is still, for all intents and purposes, the Frank you have now.”   
“Until he feeds.” Gerard stated.   
The other smiled, very slightly, and cocked his head. “Well, now, that’s when he enters my territory. He gives his mind, and body over to me then.”   
“Like he does the wolf when he changes form?”   
The other nodded.   
“Is there no way you could… Let him keep control? At least a little? Just enough so he doesn’t…”   
“Kill and rape so horrifically?” The other supplied, with a helpful smile.   
Gerard glared at him, for a moment angry that he was making such light of something that haunted Frank so much. “Yes.”  
The other shook his head. “Nothing I can do, I’m afraid. He has to learn to control me, to control himself. That’s the only way.”  
“But he can learn it?” Gerard pressed.   
“Of course. He learnt to control the wolf, didn’t he? He has all of the capabilities.”   
“But will you let him?”   
The other smiled, then scooted up to sit beside Gerard, leaning against him. “Believe it or not, Gee. Frank is the strongest part of himself. Me and the wolf… We’re strong in our own ways, but only because he is, without him we… Would fall apart. He is the one with the power. He just hasn’t learnt how to harness that yet.”   
Gerard sat, taking this in, only vaguely aware of the way the other was nuzzling against him. It felt so familiar, so like Frank, he didn’t question it.   
“Why are you… Why are you here? Why do you… Exist?” Gerard asked tentatively.   
The other shrugged. “To live. That’s all, just like everyone, everything else. I’m not one with some grand agenda.”   
“But the ones who created you… They must have had some… Purpose in mind?”   
The other shrugged. “Maybe. But mostly I think I was just an excuse to have a massive sex party before the demons were forced into hiding.”  
“Frank said he saw, he had a vision of the founders of the plan, the wolf and the vampire. He said they were… They seemed like they were in love.”   
The other laughed, quietly. “Then I don’t know. Maybe I was the product of a misfortunate gay couple who just wanted to be parents.”  
“But why go to so much trouble then? Why involve the others?” Gerard asked.  
The other squeezed Gerard’s leg. “You ask a lot of questions, huh? Why do you think I’d know the answers to this anyway? I was never actually let in on any plan, you know? I was born, then… Banished to the ether, to wait for… For Frank, and… And you. That’s it. That’s all I know.” 

Gerard closed his eyes, and sighed, heavily. “Oh.”   
“You wanted something you could tell Frank?”   
Gerard nodded. “I’d hoped… I’d hoped I’d be able to give him some kind of… Idea for why this was happening. And maybe then he wouldn’t need to be so scared of himself.”  
“Are you scared?” The other asked, softly.   
Gerard shook his head. “No. I don’t think he believes me, but no, I’m not scared.”   
He felt a hand on his cheek then, making him turn his head.  
Then, lips on his own.   
For a second, Gerard forgot that though they felt like Frank’s, tasted like Frank, it wasn’t him, not really.   
Gerard pushed the other back, gently. Shook his head. “No. It isn’t right.”   
A soft whine escaped the other. “It’s not cheating, sweetheart. In everyway that matters, I’m still Frank.”  
Gerard shook his head again. “You’re not, though.”  
The other grabbed his hand, placed it against his cheek, guiding him to trace Frank’s jaw line. “Feels like him, doesn’t it?”   
Gerard nodded, silently.  
“And these.” The other continued, now tracing Gerard’s fingers across his lips. “Felt the same when I kissed you, didn’t they?”   
Gerard winced, but nodded. “Yes.”   
“And…” The other led Gerard’s hand down now, and carefully pressed it between his legs, Gerard’s hand flat against his crotch.   
Gerard, quickly, snatched his hand away again. “Stop it.” He said, firmly.   
The other sat up then, and turned to look at Gerard. Getting onto all fours, he edged closer to Gerard, who back away, until he found himself with his back against the wall at the top of the bed.   
Gerard’s head was spinning as he looked at this other that looked, that felt so much like Frank, that sounded like him (even if he didn’t talk like him), confused, conflicted as to how to react to him.   
He looked so predatory as he moved closer, now crawling up, over Gerard so they were almost face to face.   
“Can I explain something to you, Gerard?”   
He didn’t wait for a response.   
“You know how Frank says about feeling… Primal, that intense, old, needful rush he describes when he has sex with you, especially when you go alpha on him? Well, imagine that, at it’s absolute peak, every single, second. Then you’ll be close to how it feels for me to even be in the same room as you.”   
Gerard swallowed, hard.   
“I am the undiluted version of that part of Frank, I am the equivalent of a raw nerve, exposed, and every touch and near touch is intense and… Just, just almost too much. I am want, and need, naked and impatient. You are his alpha, and his creator. And I feel every inch of that, amplified a million fucking times.”   
He leant down then, to Gerard’s ear. “Don’t pretend like you’re not a little bit curious.”   
He kissed Gerard’s ear, then neck. Then, very, very delicately let those razor teeth graze Gerard’s neck, droplets of blood issuing immediately.  
Gerard tipped his head back, gasped softly as the other delicately licked at his neck, just enough to clean off the blood.   
The other was straddling him, sitting on his lap.  
His movements obvious in what he wanted, if everything else hadn’t been obvious enough.   
“Indulge me, Gee.” The other whispered, before kissing him. “Let me know, for myself, what it’s like being with you.”   
Gerard kissed back, a hand reaching up, into the others hair.  
Then, suddenly, he turned his head. “No. Frank…”  
“It’s okay, it’s okay. Just remember… I am him.”   
The next kiss was more forceful, hungry. And Gerard responded to it, the fingers already curled in the others hair tightened. 

Gerard quickly understood what the other had meant, about the intensity, about all of it. As they, quickly, found themselves undressed, Gerard could admit that every skin on skin touch felt like… Like it was electric, warm, yet pleasant, more than pleasant. He trailed his hands down his back (Frank’s back, he told himself, it was, that’s all it was), and his fingertips felt almost numb with pleasure (he didn’t even know that could happen to fingertips), and Frank’s back arched, pressing closer still to him, kissing him harder, pressing his tongue deeper. 

Gerard didn’t understand how they had become naked so quickly, he couldn’t keep track, while his brain was still stuck on one sensation, his hands, his body was already experiencing the next.   
And then, the newest sensation that caused Gerard to feel like his head was spinning. Without warning, the other had sat up, then moved back, and had lowered himself onto Gerard’s cock.   
“Wait.” Gerard gasped, trying to open his eyes, failing. “I haven’t- You need-”  
The other paused, then smiled down at Gerard. “Don’t worry, I don’t need prep.”  
Gerard winced. “Don’t- don’t hurt Frank’s- don’t hurt his body, please.”  
A soft chuckle. “Oh, sweetheart, I promise we’re not hurting him at all.”   
Then he moved again, shifting so Gerard was even more inside him. They both cried out, and Gerard grabbed for his hand, holding tight.   
The sex was fast, still with that same level of passion and fire. Both of them loud, moaning, cursing, hands grabbing at each other.   
Gerard managed to open his eyes, and with the others eyes closed, head tipped back as he continued to move above Gerard, Gerard could fool himself, almost totally into thinking it was Frank. Pure and simple, just Frank he was having sex with.  
So long as he didn’t look too close at the teeth showing between those parted lips.

He managed to continue that imagining until he came, with ’Frank’ coming just after him.  
Gerard closed his eyes, feeling himself drifting.  
He felt someone lay beside him, a mouth to his ear.  
“You know that once you fall asleep, that’s the end of our encounter?”   
Gerard nodded.  
“So… Do I take this as goodbye?”   
“Mmm.”   
A kiss on his cheek. “Goodbye Gerard, you know where to find me.” 

The moment he feel asleep, he seemed to immediately wake up.   
But the room felt different. It was darker, for one thing, and it felt cold.   
Even though his body still felt impossibly warm from his… Encounter.  
It took him a few seconds to realise that, yes, there was still a body beside him.   
Not as close as the one he’d fallen asleep next to, but never the less.   
He sat up, smiling as he turned over to look at Frank, the true Frank, who was still asleep beside him.   
Gerard reached out, and placed a gentle hand on Frank’s shoulder.   
Immediately, he knew something was wrong.  
Frank was shaking.   
“Frank?” Gerard said, softly, testing. Was he asleep? Having a nightmare?   
Frank curled up tighter, and shrugged away from Gerard’s touch.   
“Frank. What’s… What’s wrong? Are you okay? Did everything go… Okay your end?”   
He realised he hadn’t considered this, he hadn’t thought what effect the drawing out could have on Frank, physically, possibly even mentally.   
“Frank. Please, you’re…” He’d reached his hand out again, but this time Frank smacked it away.   
There was silence as Gerard stared at him.   
“I know what you did.” Frank said, quietly.   
Gerard frowned.   
It took him a few seconds to understand what Frank might mean.   
“Frank- Frank I- I didn’t think-”  
“No!” Frank snapped. “Obviously you didn’t think I’d know about it, or you thought it wouldn’t count. But it did! And I do know, I- I saw it Gee. I saw when you fucked him. I- I could- I could feel it.”   
Horror coursed through Gerard then, as he tried to fathom how… Helpless and scared, and betrayed that must have made Frank feel.   
“It- It was my body, mine! But he- he had control of it and I was stuck- watching and-”  
Gerard remembered an earlier worry. He reached his hand under the covers, placed it on Frank’s hip. “Baby… Did. Did it hurt? Did I hurt you? I’m sorry. I-”   
Frank smacked his hand again. “Don’t! Don’t touch me!” He threw back the covers then, got hurriedly out of bed.   
Gerard sat up, tried to follow him. But Frank turned, looked right at him, and now Gerard could see at least some of that shaking had been down to the tears tracking down his cheeks. “No! Don’t follow me. I don’t- I can’t be near you.”   
He turned his back then, and muttered. “I’m sorry, I just can’t.”


	6. Catch Me Before I Have More Fun

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The couple have forced themselves apart, fearful of what being together could lead to.  
> While searching for more information on the Other, Frank learns that some answers are closer than he thinks, and Gerard finally understands his role in controlling the Other.  
> But is this information coming all too late?

Neither of them slept much the rest of the night.  
Gerard felt trapped, unable to leave the bedroom that held so many memories.  
And now even more that he didn’t want to contemplate, that he didn’t want to remember, but, of course, they were the only ones on his mind now.  
He knew, he knew he had been weak, listening, giving in to what the… The Other had said. He’d believed the things it had said, because it was easy to. He should have listened to the part of himself that told him it was wrong.  
He longed to leave the room, to follow Frank, to find him and tell him again, and again and as many times as needed that he was sorry, that he hadn’t been thinking clearly, that the Other had been so persuasive…  
But. He couldn’t, he knew how much this had hurt Frank. He needed time, space to be alone.  
And so, instead of doing what he wanted, Gerard sat, on the floor, at the end of the bed, staring at the door and trying not to think about what had happened. 

Frank had been so close to walking out the door. Just, straight up, leaving the apartment, putting as much distance between him and Gerard as possible.  
He’d even got as far as getting his hand on the handle, ready to turn it, to go. But. He couldn’t. He sighed and turned away from the door. Heading for the living room, he curled up on the couch, drawing a blanket over him.  
He was still shaking. But, he found he wasn’t mad, not at Gerard, he… He knew that Gerard didn’t set out to hurt him, to betray him.  
The memory was seared into his brain, as clear as if they were his own, and yet, he knew, he knew the wrongness that told him they weren’t his memories. They were the Others.  
Frank drew his knees up close to his chest, hiding his face, forcing the shaking to stop, trying to forget, to make it go away.  
Gerard’s hand gripping tight to his own, his other hand squeezing his thigh just a little.  
The moans falling from his mouth were not his own, nor were the words, all coming from the Other. All sensations belonged to the Other, he was merely forced to witness, in every way possible.  
He could hear, ringing in his ears, everything the Other said while it had sex, all the things it had called Gerard. Never by his name.  
Master, creator.  
The things he was to the Other. 

Then, piping up like the neglected child, Frank felt the wolf stir, heard it whine, quietly.  
_Alpha?_ It asked.  
Frank clenched his jaw, and forced himself to answer, quietly. “Me and Gee are just… Spending the night apart. He’s not far, I promise.”  
The wolf whined again.  
“Stop it.” Frank chided, impatiently. “We can spend a night away from him, we’ve done it before. Quit whining.”  
_Need._  
“What, what do you need?”  
_Need alpha._  
Now Frank tutted. “Now you’re just being ridiculous. You don’t need him right now do you-”  
_YOU NEED HIM! YOU NEED ALPHA! YOU NEED! YOU NEED! YOU-_  
The wolf was howling at him, near screaming, so loud in his head, Frank’s only instinct was to cover his ears, though of course that did nothing.  
“Stop!” Frank snapped, trying to be heard over the insistent howling. “Stop it! Why? Tell me why? What’s so important?”  
The wolf calmed, slightly, enough to explain, what little it could.  
_You need alpha._  
“Okay.” Frank said. “That part I kinda got. Why do I need him? He’s still in the same apartment, isn’t that enough?”  
A whine in response.  
Frank sighed. “Look. I don’t expect you to understand this but… Gerard… Something happened, and, I know. I know it wasn’t his fault, but, I can’t be around him right now, okay? I just. I just can’t. So, can we drop this? Just for tonight?”  
_You need alpha._  
Again, Frank sighed, heavily. “Did you listen to a word I said?”  
_Alpha keeps you strong. You need him._  
Frank nodded. “I know. I know that. But-”  
_We are both submissive to him. You are stronger with him. You need to stay with him! Keep the other one submissive._  
A flash of heat ran through Frank at the mention of the Other.  
“Yeah, well. HE didn’t seem so submissive when he fucked Gee…”  
_We are both submissive to alpha._  
“Look, can we just. Not do this right now? Please?”  
_Go to alpha! Need! Need!_  
“Drop it!” Frank snapped. “I said no! I- I can’t. I know you don’t understand why, but I can’t. Just… Let me get some sleep, would you?”  
The wolf continued to whine, but it stopped talking, allowing Frank to lie down and fall into an uneasy sleep. 

Gerard heard, every time the wolf called out to him, begging him near. But he couldn’t, he didn’t dare. He couldn’t betray Frank again, even if this part of Frank was so familiar, so… Harmless. He could tell the wolf was only seeking comfort, it was worried, there were no dark intents. But, still, he couldn’t. It hurt so much not to go. 

///

Frank’s uneasy sleep was plagued by visions and twisted words of the Other. Hot whispers in his ear about Gerard, how good it was, how easy.  
“He gave in so quickly. He was happy to believe what I told him.”  
“Why do you care anyway? It was still you he saw, you still felt it, experienced it. You still felt his touch, his cock hard inside you. That’s what counts, right?”  
“Oh but it was so good. Do you think he had more fun with me? Maybe you should let me out every time he fucks you. He clearly enjoyed it.”  
“I’m the raw form, after all. All that lust and fire that resides in you, I draw it out.”  
“Now, now, no. No, don’t cry, don’t cry. I’m trying to help you, to help you harness everything you can be, all your strength and power. That’s all, that’s all I’m doing, I’m only trying to help.”  
“And we just got stronger…” 

///

He woke up just as it was starting to get light out. Jolting awake, feeling tears on his cheeks. Looking over in the direction of the bedroom, he felt the ache of wanting to be near Gerard, to be with him. But, Frank realised then that he was scared, scared to be near him.  
He no longer trusted himself around Gerard. He didn’t trust the Other to be near him. Twice now the Other had overruled Frank’s wants when it came to Gerard. Still, he had no idea how to control it.  
But, he did know one way the Other couldn’t get through. 

Gerard heard the now so familiar scream, the one that only ever meant one thing. Ignoring everything Frank had ever said about staying away when he was shifting, Gerard rushed to his feet, and ran to the bedroom door, throwing it open.  
“Frank! Wait!”  
But before he could even get to the living room, the cries had subsided, the horrific sounds mixed in with cracking and breaking and remaking.  
He knew then that the change had been welcomed, asked for by Frank, it was always quicker when it wasn’t a forced change, like the one caused by the moon.  
The wolf trotted up to Gerard, who crouched down to look the wolf in the eyes. He stroked the wolfs head, and smiled, a little sadly.  
“I’d hoped to talk to Frank this morning.”  
The wolf bowed his head slightly. “Not that I’m not pleased to see you.” Gerard added, softly, reaching to pet him.  
“Can I? Talk to Frank? Just… Just for a minute?”  
_He’s… Hiding._  
“From me?” Gerard asked, his voice just almost cracking as he said this.  
From… Himself. From the other one. You’re- He says you’re safer, if he hides.  
Gerard ran his hand through the wolf’s fur. “I’m not afraid, I’m not afraid of him, not any part of him.”  
_He is._  
“I know.” Gerard sighed. “Can you… Can you tell him I’m sorry? I made a mistake and… I’m so sorry. And. I’m not giving up on figuring this out. We’re not giving up.”  
The wolf moved closer, and nuzzled up to Gerard.  
_He knows. All of it. He knows._

///

Frank stayed as the wolf, while Gerard spoke on the phone once again to Mikey.  
“Well, is there anything I can do? Mikes… We have to speed this up, okay, we need… Some kind of answers here! Something to help Frank control this thing.”  
He moved into another room and spoke in a low whisper. “Look. Last night went… Really wrong, okay? And now Frank doesn’t trust himself to be anything other than the wolf around me. He’s been wolf since this morning. Now, I don’t know how long he can keep this up, but I do know it’s going to cause some serious fucking problems when it comes to getting him the blood he needs. I need, something! So that Frank feels safe enough to shift back and- and just- Mikey. I can’t let him withdraw from blood, not again. Not now.” 

Mikey attempted to calm his brother down, quickly figuring out nothing but answers were going to do that.  
“Alright! Shut up a second, look. I’ve been trying to come up with a list of everyone who might have been there, the night this… Thing was created. There’s no record of who the wolf and vampire were, but… I‘m still trying.”  
“The wolf would be dead by now Mikey, you know werewolves don’t live forever.”  
“Yes, but I thought maybe I could track down a descendant or something… Perhaps something passed down through the familial generations.”  
“You mean… Born wolves, rather than made ones?”  
“Exactly.”  
“Well? How many families are there?”  
“Seems there’s a whole bunch of them, mostly families were two made wolves hooked up and created little werewolf babies, and then their children carried on down the line. But… There only about… Four families that I can trace all the way back to before the records were taken down.”  
“So you’re thinking one of those families is from… That wolf?”  
“It’s a pretty good bet. And… I haven’t even told you the best bit.”  
“What’s the best bit?”  
“One of the families traces all the way down to a wolf in Frank’s own pack. Orphan kid taken in by a new pack when his parents were killed by vampires.”  
Gerard let out a groan. “Great, so he’s not gonna want to talk to us, huh?”  
“Unlikely… Since, um… It was our clan that attacked his parents.”  
Gerard near screamed down the phone, throwing himself back against the wall. “Fucking hell, Mikes! I thought this was meant to be good news!”  
“They’ll talk to Frank though, won’t they? Ray said, no matter what, he’s still part of their pack.”  
A small whimper escaped Gerard. “Mikes, I can’t even get Frank to shift from wolf right now, how exactly am I meant to convince him to go to his pack and speak with one of them about the… Creation I put in him? Especially- Especially since he hasn’t talked to anyone except Ray since he turned!”  
“If it means possible answers about this thing. I’ll do it.”  
Gerard jumped at the sound of Frank’s voice. He turned around and stared, wide eyed at Frank, standing there, clearly freshly shifted back and slightly sweaty from it.  
Gerard dropped the phone and hugged him, tightly. “Fucking hell I am so glad to see you.”  
Frank hugged back, before quickly pushing Gerard away, and taking a step back. “I still don’t trust myself. Not around you. I can’t trust it.”  
Gerard, his brow creasing, stepped closer, reached out, wanting to kiss him, just for a second.  
Frank took an immediate step back again, holding a hand out. “Didn’t you listen?”  
“I can’t even kiss you? I can’t even hold you? Frank… I know I hurt you but-”  
“It’s not that!” Frank snapped. “I know you didn’t mean to hurt me, I know you were tricked. But that’s exactly why I can’t let the.. The Other within touching distance of you.”  
Gerard shook his head. “I won’t- I won’t let it trick me again, please, please Frank.”  
“Gerard.” Frank said, softly, glancing at the phone still on the floor. “Mikey has answers. And I need that name.”  
Suddenly remembering it was there, Gerard bent down, and picked up the phone again. “Sorry Mikes. I… Yeah. So. What’s their name?” 

///

Tate Maccon was the youngest member of the wolf pack. However, having been born a werewolf, his wolf was one of the oldest of the pack.  
Generally he was very quiet, kept to himself. In the earliest days, Frank had found him the easiest to be around (apart from Ray), since Tate put no pressure on him. They could just sit in their own silences for as long as they wanted, neither demanding much from the other. Also, having lived his whole life with his wolf, Tate was more in tune with it, more comfortable, and he had helped Frank understand the wolf in a different way than what anyone else had tried to teach him. 

However, when Frank had started seeing Gerard, Tate had gotten distant from him. Never staying long in the room. He wasn’t outright obviously angry or rude or mean about Gerard, but his discomfort was more than noticeable. Frank had tried, a couple of times to talk to him about it, but Tate wouldn’t let him, walking away as soon as the subject was brought up. He tolerated Gerard’s presence only at a distance. There was a fear in his eyes that Frank had never understood.  
Until now. 

When Gerard had passed on the name that Mikey had supplied, a lot of things slipped into place very quickly.  
Whenever Frank had asked where Tate’s family was, Ray had brushed it off. Once, when really pushed, Ray had given as much as ‘we are his family now’. And that was it.  
Now, Frank knew the secret that Ray had kept, protecting Tate, protecting them all.  
And it was no wonder Tate was so wary, so scared of Gerard. It wasn’t hate, rivalry that had forced the distance, it was pure, cold fear. 

When Frank had called Ray, asking where Tate was, if they could meet, Frank had explained what he knew. And finally he got the full story. 

The family had not long moved to the area. Husband, wife, and little eight year old Tate. The son had had problems at his previous school, uncontrollable behaviour at certain times (the wolf breaking through, the boy so young he was unable to stop it). So they’d moved, brought him to a new town, a new school, new start. They’d known about the other wolf pack already in the area, and had contacted them before moving, making sure there would be no issues. Of course, they’d been welcomed, and invited to join in with gatherings, should they wish, even though they clearly had no need to join the pack itself. 

It took less than a week for the vampires to decide they didn’t want a second pack springing up on their turf.  
The house had been broken in to. Swarmed.  
If only they could say the deaths had been quick. But the vampires hadn’t had true sport for so long, they were restless, and restlessness made them cruel.  
The mother had sensed the vampires before they got into the house, she had woken her son, told him to turn, since his wolf form was smaller, and to hide in the closet, where she hid him under a pile of her own clothes, to mask his scent with her own, and throw the vampires off. 

The other pack heard about the attack the next morning, and they went straight to the house. Found Tate, still in his wolf cub form. All the wolves in the house could understand the cubs squeaking howl, asking for it’s mother. 

Now, the grown up Tate was sat in the chair of his bedroom in his own small apartment. His eyes never left Frank, though everything else about him was fidgety, his nails chewed.  
Frank walked cautiously into the room. “Ray told you I was coming?”  
A long silence, then Tate replied, around his nails, “Yeah.”  
“He let me in, by the way, just in case, you know, you thought I let myself in or-” Frank’s joking smile fell away quickly.  
Tate’s eyes darted away from Frank then, and quickly back. The lack of trust was obvious, and painful.  
Frank took a step closer, “Tate..”  
“That’s close enough!” Tate snapped, jumping to his feet, stepping back, closer to the wall, changing his mind and stepping forward again, determined to not show he was afraid (even though it too was obvious).  
Frank sighed, but made no move to get closer. “Tate. Please.”  
Tate shook his head, chewing at the skin around his thumb now. “Fucking… Filthy fucking fang fucker.” He muttered to himself, no longer looking at Frank. “Shoulda told them to lock you up when you started fucking him. Fangs can’t be fucking trusted. I know. I know that. You wouldn’t listen. No one does! They think just cause they see me as the kid brother I don’t know shit!”  
Frank’s turn to shake his head now. “Gerard’s different. I can trust him, I do trust him.”  
Tate’s head shaking got more violent. “If you knew. If you knew what he, what they all did. You wouldn’t. You’d never, never want to be near him again. Never.”  
Frank closed his eyes, slowly. “Tate. I do know. Ray told me… Everything. The vampires, how they attacked your house, killed your- your parents.”  
Tate’s eyes went wide. “And you still say you trust him? You say he’s fucking different?! He was there! He was fucking part of it!”  
“You don’t know that. Not for sure. There’s no way of knowing if the whole clan was there or not.”  
Tate laughed, hollowly. “They were all there. Trust me. All of them. It was a fucking lesson and they were all there to fucking teach it!”  
Frank closed his eyes. Bowed his head. “Even if he was, I can’t… Tate, I’m sorry, I’m so, so sorry for what they did to you, to your family but. I can’t, I can’t hate Gerard for whatever part he might have played. Especially not… Not after the things I’ve done.”  
Tate blinked, slowly. “So it’s true then?” His voice was quiet. “I didn’t… I didn’t even-” He looked at Frank again, his eyes sad and pleading. “I was just so fucking relieved when Ray said he’d seen you, that you were alive. But I refused, I refused to believe you’d been turned. You couldn’t have, not if you were still alive it’s not… It’s not possible.”  
Now, Frank took a tentative step forward, closer to Tate, to give the younger man a more clear view of himself. Then, index finger pushing at his top lip, revealed a fang.  
Tate staggered back, sitting heavily on his bed. He shook his head, fingers tugging at his sandy hair. “But- You, you still smell like… Like a wolf, you still smell like you.”  
Frank nodded. “I’m still wolf, but also vampire. And… Something else.”  
Tate looked up at him, and sucked in a deep breath. “The rumours that got back to the pack? The deaths? The… Brutal, brutal deaths? The- The rapes? It really was you?”  
Frank bowed his head, closed his eyes, fists tightening. It was answer enough for Tate.  
Tears shone the younger mans eyes. “We didn’t believe it, you know? None of us did. None of us could believe for a second that you- That Frank, our Frank could do any of that. We said it was the vampires making up stories, showing off, rubbing it in our faces that you were one of them now. But- Oh fuck.” A hand clamped around his mouth, trying to stem back the nausea that had suddenly risen in him. His eyes were still wide open.  
“What… What’s happened to you?” Tate asked, when finally he trusted himself to remove his hand. There was no accusation in his voice, just pure, simple incomprehension. 

Frank came closer, and knelt in front of Tate, not looking up at him, still unable to do that. “When Gee turned me… Me and him, we did something that hadn’t been done before, something that… Shouldn’t happen. Tate, I should have died that night, what Gee did, it should have killed me. But it didn’t, I came back, I came back a vampire, but I still brought back my wolf. From that night, I was both, I still am. But… What we didn’t know, not right away, was that I’d become something else as well. I’d… Somehow I’d brought something else back with me too. Something that… Had been waiting a very, very long time, for me and for Gerard.”  
He looked up, and saw Tate watching him, listening very closely.  
“We didn’t know something was wrong until… The first time I fed.”  
Tate nodded. “The first attack.”  
“Yes.”  
Frank paused, then, hesitantly continued. “We’ve learnt a little more, over the past few weeks. I know… Some things about the being that’s taken up residence but. There’s gaps in our knowledge that terrify me.”  
Again, Tate nodded, taking this in.  
“Now, we do know that this… Thing was created back when demons still ruled the world, just before it was handed over to the humans. Tate, I think I’m right that… Your ancestors go back that far? Your wolf ancestors, I mean.”  
Tate licked his lips, slowly, then nodded. “I know why you wanted to talk to me specifically now.”  
He paused, then hastily pulled at a chain around his neck, pulling out a large, round, tarnished pendant.  
A snarling wolf in intricate detail emblazoned one side, then, as Tate turned it over, Frank could see the writing on the other side.  
‘Protection of the family’.  
Tate’s surname was underneath that.  
“You know ‘Maccon’ means ‘son of the wolf’, right?”  
Frank smiled a little shyly, and shook his head. Tate just shrugged. “Well, it does, about as literal as you can get. My ‘wolf’ bloodline traces back as far as it’s possible to go. And… There’s a family legend that traces back just as far.”  
Frank felt an overwhelming cold rush over him. This was falling into place, wasn’t it?  
“I didn’t know about it until a few years ago… Apparently the wolves found a book, in my parents room. Ray gave it to me, saying that I was ready to see it. He never looked further than the first page of the book, knowing to respect these things, I guess.  
It said that our ancestor was one of the first werewolves, right back to that time you said about, when all the creatures of the night ran riot. And our ancestor was one of the most powerful, first pack leader, if you like.  
They talk of an affair between him and a vampire. Shameful, of course, but what did they care? They were both the most powerful of their kind and who would argue with them?  
Then the angels came, and they knew they’d be forced into their own separate communities.  
A ‘party’ was held. And… They devised a… Creation. The purest form of chaos and… All things they wished they could be but could no longer be.  
It was said that this… This thing would only be brought back by the union of a vampire, and a werewolf, and both as powerful as my ancestor and his lover. Anyone else who tried to bring it to life, would simply die trying.”  
Tate paused and looked up, a small smile on his face. “Guess it finally found it’s new daddies, huh?” 

It was only now, that Frank became aware of the soft hum that had been ringing through his veins ever since he’d walked into the room, ever since he’d been in Tate’s presence. Now the intensity heightened, and slowly, realisation began to dawn upon Frank, and he knew he needed to get out of the room, out of the apartment, and soon.  
“Tate.” He said, hurriedly. “I just need to know. What does it want? Did the legends ever say what this being wanted?”  
He gasped, suddenly then as the hum got more intense, louder. Tate moved forward, eyes wide again. “Frank? What’s wrong?”  
Frank shook his head, deflecting the question. “Just. Do you know what it wants?”  
The hum was audible now, even Tate could hear it. “Frank? What is that? What’s going on?” He looked around the room, wildly, trying to figure out the source.  
Frank reached out, grabbed Tate’s hand, then leapt back suddenly as he was overwhelmed by heat of the touch.  
“He recognises you.” Frank said, his voice hushed, disbelieving. “The Other. He recognises you, your bloodline. He knows who you are and-”  
His head bowed as he tried to focus. There was something like the change experienced between man and wolf, but at the same time, so different. This was not a physical take over, but a mental one.  
Oh God, the Other was forcing his way through. 

Tate reached out his hand to Frank’s shoulder, trying to calm him.  
But that split second was all it took for the other to win through.  
When Frank raised his head, it was with the Others eyes. And when it smiled, there were those impossible teeth.  
Tate scrambled back onto the bed, away.  
The Other followed, pinning him, trapping him with hands clasped at his wrists.  
“Frank.” Tate said, uncertainly.  
The Other smiled. “Hello, Maccon. I’ve soo longed to meet you.” He leant down, and placed a careful kiss on Tate’s cheek.  
“You’re almost as intoxicating as my creator… Not quite. But almost.”  
“Frank.” Tate’s voice came out shaky, although he tried to make it commanding. “Frank I know whatever’s going on, you don’t wanna do it, okay?”  
The Other smiled. “Oh, he knows what’s happening all right, and he’s clamouring on inside here, telling me to stop it. But… He’s not the one in charge right now.”  
He leant down further, to Tate’s neck, and the boy shivered, terrified. He gasped softly as a kiss was placed there instead.  
“I am.” 

///

“Well… This certainly is different. Been a while since someone demanded my presence.”  
Swallowing hard, Gerard swallowed down his fears, and spoke evenly. “I didn’t demand, I merely asked. But I am… Appreciative you agreed to meet with me.”  
After Frank had left, Gerard and Mikey had talked once again, and they realised that there was someone on their side who had a chance of information.  
It had been easier to track him down than they’d originally expected.  
“Of course.” The vampire Lord by the name Valentine said, smiling as he sat on the bed in Gerard’s room. “I was taken with you on my first visit… Intrigued, even. I could hardly say no to a second time.”  
Valentine closed his eyes and leant back slightly. “I can just… Feel the love this room has seen. You and the wolf… Such a perfect couple.”  
“It’s him we need to talk about.”  
Valentine looked up, sharply, fear crossing his face. “You haven’t… The two of you are still together, yes? Please tell me yes, you two are just-”  
“We’re still together. That’s not the issue.”  
Valentine’s hands clutched over his heart. “You scared me, young one! You scared me a great deal then.” Then he paused, took in a deep breath, scenting the air.  
“You’re scared… Nervous. I can smell the nerves on you. You are in your clan home, why would you be nervous?”  
Gerard snorted, shortly. “Probably because my clan isn’t exactly happy with some of the decisions I’ve made.”  
Valentine nodded, slowly. “They still disapprove of your relationship with the wolf.”  
“It’s not just that anymore.”  
Valentine’s eyes widened, and he got to his feet, slowly. “So.” He nodded. “So you did it, you turned him, and it was successful.” None of this was a question.  
“And you knew it would be. You’re the one who suggested it to Frank, who got him thinking about it.”  
Valentine shrugged. “I suspected it would work. All the signs were there… Such a young wolf so far advanced in his powers, the smell of your blood in his veins. The fact the wolf had chosen you as it’s alpha. Not to mention the fact you had already had success in turning a vampire yourself. All added up to…”  
“And you knew what turning him would mean. You might not be old enough to have been there when the being that now lives in Frank was created, but you are old enough to be part of the generation that still shared the lore about it! You knew what would happen!”  
Valentine blinked, slowly, and drew in a deep breath, then sighed as he let it out, and sat back down heavily. He nodded. “I did know. Or. At least, again, I suspected. I half hoped… That part of the lore might be fiction, a story made up to prevent anyone from trying.” He looked up at Gerard now. “But the lore was true? The Child of Chaos now lives inside your sweet lover?”  
Gerard nodded, slowly.  
Valentine bowed his head. “I’m sorry. How is he? Has he suffered much?”  
Gerard closed his eyes, and sank down into his desk chair. “He weathered the turn well. He’s kept some of his wolf tendencies, and taken on most of the vampires. That part was… Easy. We realised something was wrong when… When I took him out to hunt. He was. He was vicious, in a way that he couldn’t control. And not in the careless way some newborns have on their first kills, not just messy, it was… Real cruelty.”  
Valentine nodded. “Old evil can create that. Especially when it’s been waiting so long. What else?”  
Gerard swallowed, then pushed up his sleeve to show his arm, where it was still healing. “He was too scared to feed, so I gave him some of my blood while he slept. Then he attacked me.”  
Valentine lent forward, gently cradling Gerard’s arm in his hands, turning it over as he looked over the still angry gashes. He tutted. “That was foolish, Gerard. Giving your own blood to a vampire who is starving themselves is very dangerous.”  
“I know that! But I had no other choice, he wouldn’t take anything I offered him, it was the only way to save him!”  
Valentine nodded. “I know, I know. And you’d risk anything for him. I understand.” He frowned. “These wounds are still very inflamed… How long ago was this?”  
“About… A week? Maybe more?”  
Valentine looked up sharply. And Gerard nodded. “I know.” He said.  
“A vampire’s wounds should not look like this a day after he has been attacked.”  
“I know.” Gerard repeated, more forcefully.  
Finally letting go of Gerard’s arm, Valentine said, “I would say there was more of Chaos than of your dear Frank in those bites, he has fed from you before, I assume?”  
Gerard nodded. “Yes.”  
“And they all healed normally?”  
“Yes.”  
Valentine made a short noise of agreement. “As I thought. He was more the creation residing in him than he was himself when he attacked you. I don’t know if it’ll definitely work, but your best bet of ever getting those wounds healed is by purifying them.”  
Gerard frowned, not liking the sound of that. “How do I do that?”  
Valentine smiled, ruefully. “Same way the humans try to purify us… Holy water.”  
Gerard’s eyes went wide. “What? That’ll- that’ll-”  
“Hurt like hell, yes, but it won’t kill you. Not unless you drink it. Which, brings me to my next point, don’t let Frank feed from you for a couple of days after you do it. If there’s even a chance of holy water getting into his system… Then we really are looking at a messy, painful death.”  
Gerard grimaced. “Don’t need to worry about that. Ever since he attacked me he’s too scared to feed from me anyway.”  
Valentine shook his head, sadly. “That poor sweet boy… So full of fire. He will make a great vampire, once he learns to come to terms with this other new part of himself. Is there anything else?”  
Gerard swallowed, then nodded, hesitantly. “The… Other, um, the child of chaos? It had been communication with Frank, through these kind of… Dreams. So we… found a way that I could… Communicate with it directly, see if I could get some answers.”  
Valentine watched him, unblinking. “And did you?”  
Gerard shook his head. “No, he was too… Distracted.”  
“Mmm. The alpha of the wolf in Frank, creator of the vampire in him, I’m sure Chaos found you very distracting. I trust you were sensible enough to keep your distance and not give in to his… Persuasions?”  
Gerard looked away, unable to admit this, to bring it up again. No sooner had he turned his head, then he felt a sharp smack across his cheek. Immediately he looked up, shocked as he realised Valentine had hit him.  
The Vampire Lord stood over Gerard, eyes wide and burning. “You foolish little child! What did you do? What wicked games did you fall for at the persuasion of this.. This creation of mischief and trickery?”  
Gerard clenched his jaw, trying not to give in to the tears stinging his eyes, less from the sore at his cheek, and more from the renewed realisation of what he’d done.  
“Answer me!” Valentine snapped. “Tell me, tell me young one that you did not lay with this being.”  
And now the tears sprung forth freely. “It- it said it would be okay! That it was just- just sleeping with Frank, nothing different! He looked- oh fuck, he looks just like him, you can barely tell them apart and- and he-”  
Valentine crouched down, in front of Gerard, and grabbed his face in both of his hands. “Oh you fool. He looked like your lover and felt like your lover but you must have not he was not.”  
Gerard nodded. “I don’t- I don’t know why I gave in… I don’t know why I believed him…”  
Valentine sighed, and stroked his hand through Gerard’s hair. “Because he would have made it hard for you not to.” He shook his head. “How has Frank taken it?”  
“He… He’s even more scared, of himself, of what the other can do. He… He won’t be anything but the wolf around me.”  
Valentine nodded, solemnly. “That is an understandable reaction. The Child of Chaos cannot force it’s will through the wolf. But neither can he force his will through Frank! Not if Frank learns to control him! Frank must learn this, and quickly. He cannot, must not let this being win. If he does…”  
Gerard stopped crying, and looked up, feeling the weight of these words. “Valentine? What happens if… If Frank isn’t strong enough? If he can’t hold the other one back?”  
Valentine stood. “Then I fear for us all. Vampires, werewolves, ghosts, demons, humans, everyone.” He looked down on Gerard. “And you just made him stronger. By sleeping with him, you gave him more… Power. He already fed from you when he attacked you. Gerard. You must understand. You are the one who holds the power for every part of Frank. You have to be very careful just what part of him you give that power to.”

And now, finally, Gerard understood just what had been meant when he’d been told he was important to all this. Why the Other regarded him so highly. And, he understood how much Frank needed him.


	7. Take A Stand Against Feeling Lost

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Other seems to keep gaining more and more power, and while Gerard seems confident in his abilities to help control it, Frank is not so willing to take that risk.   
> And then the improbable happens.   
> But maybe Frank just added a brand new complication to his life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes! Hello this fic is alive again!   
> Sorry about the wait and all... Hope you guys still like it!

When Frank woke, he had those blissful few seconds when you think everything was just a bad dream.   
Then, he noticed the bed he was on felt, and more intensely smelt all wrong. The lack of Gerard’s scent was particularly noticeable, and Frank found himself waking up fast with that realisation.   
He felt a hand on his chest, pushing him back down as he tried to sit up. He fought this, only to find he was pushed down harder.   
“Is it you?” A voice he recognised demanded. “Or are you still that… That… Other?”   
Frank finally forced his eyes open, and immediately they settled on the person holding him down, the person demanding answers.   
Tate.  
Frank blinked, then sighed, heavily. “Oh fuck… Thank fucking god, you’re alive.”   
“Answer!” Tate said again, more forcefully.   
Frank felt, briefly like yelling back, but he found he had no energy for it. “You tell me… My eyes look normal to you? My teeth look human?” He paused, smirked a little, remembering his fangs. “Well… Mostly human anyway.”   
Tate looked over him, then nodded. “Yeah.”  
“Then it’s me. Just me.”

Somehow Tate couldn’t quite bring himself to leave the room. He couldn’t tell if it was fear for himself, the natural instinct not to turn your back on something that could harm you, or fear for Frank, of what he now understood laid within his packmate, and what effects it could have on him.   
Frank was awake, but exhausted. Whatever The Other had done this time had drained him more than ever before. And in his hazed mind he knew, he understood the enormity of what had happened. The Other had forced it’s will, past the usual restraints and taken over in a whole new way. He looked at Tate and tried, tried to remember what had happened, but, he realised he dearly didn’t want to. 

Tate had wanted to call Ray, get him there, but Frank insisted, pleaded for Gerard.   
As scared as he still was to be around Gerard, especially now The Other had shown it’s growing strength again, it wasn’t as if he could deny the pull, the need.   
He needed Gerard. And in that place where it always rested, the wolf stirred, agreed. And perhaps, just perhaps that stirring of the wolf was what finally convinced Tate to agree. 

Gerard had already been on his way, as it happened.   
And Tate had to hold back his every instinct to turn the vampire away when he opened the door to him.   
Gerard kept his eyes downcast, humbly, a show that he meant no threat to the young werewolf. “Thank you for calling me, Tate.” He said, quietly.   
Tate just nodded, and stood aside to let Gerard in. 

Gerard didn’t need direction to find Frank, they never needed direction to find each other, after all.   
Frank sat up immediately as he saw Gerard, his eyes wide, panicked but also relieved. His arms outstretched as he almost leaned too far out of the bed that did not belong to him.   
Gerard was with him, pulling him close, and holding him tightly, Frank’s face buried against Gerard’s chest, and he shook. He could not calm down, but he could take comfort in being close, finally being close to Gerard again. 

Eventually, Frank regained some composure, only as his exhaustion took hold again, overriding his fear and panic.   
“I didn’t- I didn’t think this could happen. I’m sorry.”   
Gerard shook his head, and smiled softly. “None of us could have predicted this. It’s not your fault Frank, I know it, Tate knows it.”  
Gerard glanced behind him, at the boy who seemed suddenly impossibly young to him.   
Tate was chewing his fingernails again, but he paused long enough to nod in agreement.   
Frank’s eyes closed again. “It’s still me, physically though.” His voice even quieter than before.   
Gerard stroked his hand back through Frank’s hair, shushed him gently. “You need to sleep some more?”   
But Frank had already fallen asleep again before he could even hear Gerard’s question.   
Gerard sighed, and smiled a strained, determined smile. He squeezed Frank’s hand. “We will figure this out.”  
Then, turning his head just slightly, Gerard aimed his next sentence at Tate. “So, do you think you feel up to telling me what happened?”   
He waited for an answer, not surprised that a response wasn’t immediate.   
Then he looked around, and saw Tate was gone, the door slightly ajar.   
Gerard closed his eyes briefly, despairingly.   
He squeezed Frank’s hand again, tighter, then let go, heading off into the apartment, looking for Tate. 

Curled up in a corner of his living room, head buried, Tate was found.   
Gerard crouched in front of him, and waited for Tate to acknowledge him.   
The boy was shaking and Gerard couldn’t begin to imagine all the reasons why.   
Eventually, slowly, Tate lifted his head. His jaw clenched and eyes sharp, glaring at Gerard. “You know who I am?”   
Gerard nodded. “Tate Maccon, part of Frank’s pack.”   
“And?”   
“And…” Gerard paused, sighed, hanging his head briefly before looking up again. “Son of the werewolf husband and wife that my clan… Tracked and executed.”   
Tate nodded, every action of his remained sharp. “Were you there?”   
“Tate… I don’t think now is-”  
“Answer me!” Tate snapped. “Frank doesn’t know, but I think he should know whether you were part of tearing my family apart- of taking away my parents!”  
Gerard looked away. “Even if it won’t make a difference to him?”   
Tate nodded again.   
Gerard closed his eyes, slowly. “I owe you that knowledge too, I suppose.”  
A difficult, slow silence passed between them. “Yes. I was there.”   
“And what was your part in it?”  
“Tate, what does it-”  
“Just answer the question!”   
Gerard’s jaw clenched and, it was only now that he realised, just how much he had changed since he’d met Frank. No wonder the other vampires often looked at him like a foreign creature, he barely recognised himself in the vampire he was before he knew Frank.   
“My brother and me… Our job was. Was to find you.”  
Gerard paused, wincing, remembering the instructions, the clear plan. “The idea was… We weren’t… The plan was never to kill you. We figured, you were a child, a pup, we could, we could scare you into doing what we wanted. We were going to…”  
“Have me watch as you killed my parents in front of me.” There was no need to put it as a question.   
“Our leader was furious that we couldn’t find you. He was ready to, to set the house on fire, just to flush you out. But it was… Mikey, my brother said that… You didn’t need to see it to learn the lesson, just knowing your parents were killed by vampires. Seeing the bodies, that would be enough.”  
Gerard shrugged. “That was good enough for our leader.”  
“Bet your leader would be disappointed to know I never saw them.”  
Gerard nodded, then he looked up. “Ray make sure of that?”   
“Yeah.”  
Gerard smiled, weakly. “He’s a good man.”  
“He is.”  
Another silence.   
“I have another question.”  
Gerard nodded, acknowledging this.   
“Did you… Did you feed from my parents?”  
“I- Yes. Yes we, we all did.”   
When Gerard dared look at Tate again, he saw the boy swiping at his eyes with the back of his wrist.   
“Thank you.” Tate said, his voice cracking slightly around the tears. “Thank you for being honest.”   
Then, without warning, his tears came harder, shaking his body even more than before. Gerard reached out, all instinct, unthinking of the discussion they’d just had, and grabbed Tate’s hand, squeezing tightly. Tate squeezed back just as hard.  
“I’m not- I’m not crying for the reason you think. I’m not crying for my parents. I mourned them long ago, I’m- I’m at peace with that, and trust they are at peace. I’m crying- I’m crying because I’m scared. Because I’m scared of that thing inside Frank, and of what it can do, and what might happen to Frank, and- and I’m scared of what it’s already done… To me.”   
“Tate.” Gerard said, carefully, gently. “Can you tell me what happened? We need as much information on the Other if we’re gonna figure out… What to do.”   
But Tate only seemed to be half listening. “Funny thing is… Stupid thing really, considering all along he was destined to get linked to a vampire. When Frank first joined us, when he was scared and unwilling, and so often it was just us two, in silences, but nice ones. And, it wasn’t until he started branching out more, getting comfortable with himself that I realised… Fuck, I’m always late on these things. I realised that since Ray had first led Frank to my room to share some company with me… I’d gone fucking head over heels for him.   
Oh, you know, over time it dulled a little, the comfy groove of being friends wore down the intensity of… More. Though, you know, just sometimes I’d wonder…”  
Gerard continued to listen, wondering and dreading just where this was going.   
“Funny. I remember, just for a day or two, I really, really hoped that if I were ever to sleep with a guy… It’d be him.”   
Gerard slowed, hard, his mouth felt oddly dry. “Tate, What… What exactly are you saying?”  
Tate closed his eyes, and more tears easily fell from beneath his lashes.   
“Don’t- don’t tell Frank, he doesn’t need to know. It wasn’t his fault, I know, I know that.”   
“Tate! What happened?”   
A pause, longer than before, and it seemed almost as if Tate were holding his breath.   
“Tate.” Gerard repeated, more gently. “It’s okay, you can tell me.”  
When Tate finally replied, it was so quiet, Gerard couldn’t hear.   
The second time was just barely loud enough.   
“If you have to tell him, don’t- don’t say it was rape. Just say it was sex, just, reckless, painful sex. Not rape. He- he doesn’t need that on his conscience too, he doesn’t need me on his conscience too.”   
He paused, then laughed, an awful, cracked laugh. He swiped at his eyes again, though it did little. Tried a smile, and it just looked like it hurt.  
Without further thought or care, Gerard pulled Tate close and held him tight.  
The tears soaked through the shoulder of his shirt, but Gerard didn’t even consider letting go.   
How long before Frank remembered some fragment of what had happened? Something that no one could deny.   
How could he possibly be expected to take this burden too? 

////

Eventually Gerard decided it would be best to move Frank while he was still asleep. The exchange of goodbyes between Gerard and Tate were not exactly comfortable, but they were better than any other vampire and werewolf in their circumstances could hope for.   
“If you need anything…” Gerard offered.   
“I have Ray.” Tate said, looking away awkwardly.   
Gerard nodded. “Of course.”   
“I don’t- I don’t blame Frank.” Tate said, just as Gerard turned to head out the door. He paused, looking back again. “Just.” Tate continued, shuffling his feet. “Just make sure he knows that okay? Make sure he knows I don’t blame him.”   
Gerard nodded. “I will. And. Thanks Tate, for-”  
Tate just nodded, cutting him off, and waving him to the door. 

Frank slept a long time, again, needing to recover from the surge in power from the Other. Blissfully his dreams were empty.   
When he woke he was glad to find Gerard near, scared that perhaps Gerard would stay away, like he’d told him to.   
It pleased him, knowing they were both as stubborn as each other. 

And, finally, they imparted the knowledge they’d both learned. Frank telling Tate’s story, and Gerard explaining what Valentine had told him.  
Gerard didn’t mention what he and Tate had talked about, it wasn’t necessary. Though he did impart the message Tate had given him.  
Frank cried when Gerard said that Tate didn’t blame him. He felt guilty about how good it was to be in Gerard’s arms again. He was so nervous, so scared of what the Other could do. Could he ever trust himself again?   
Gerard wrapped his arms tightly around Frank, gently shushing him, stroking his hair, as Frank buried his face against Gerard’s shoulder.   
“This is dangerous.” Frank said.  
Gerard shook his head. “No, it isn’t. Trust me. It’s the safest we can be.”  
Frank’s countering head shake was much more violent. “No. No. You know what happened with Tate. Gee. Gee. He can get through now, he doesn’t need permission or anything, he can just get through. Gerard. If he comes through again, please. Please, fight him, stop him. Don’t- don’t worry about hurting me, just stop him.”   
Gerard again shushed gently. “It’s okay, it’s okay Frank, I promise.”   
Frank was still shaking his head, even as Gerard bent closer and carefully kissed him.   
Immediately, Frank’s hands were gripping Gerard’s arms, tight, just slightly painful. The kiss was immediately passionate, fierce.   
Frank pulled himself away, shaking his head again, eyes closed tight.  
“This is bad, this is very bad.”  
Gerard smiled, gently, comfortingly. “It’s not. We’re fine.”  
“We’re tempting him.” Frank said. “We’re just tempting him to come out.”  
“No. We’re not. Please, Frank, trust me.”   
He bent in close to Frank’s ear and whispered, “You’re in control.”

Gerard’s fangs carefully grazed over Frank’s skin, and he felt Frank shiver.   
“Nearly all the scars are faded now.” Gerard said. “Been a while.”  
Frank wanted to nod, but couldn’t make himself move. He’d forgotten what it was like, this old, almost forgotten dance of vampire and willing prey.  
“Do it.” Frank said. “Make me… Feel like myself again.”   
A moments hesitation, then Gerard let his fangs sink in to the familiar skin.   
Frank gasped, his grip once again tightening on Gerard’s arms. Then he moaned deep as the old, beautiful sensations washed over him. His neck arched back, and Gerard’s hand reached up, cradling the back of his head.  
And for those moments there was nothing else in the world, just the two of them, and this ancient, primal ritual. And Frank felt safe, he felt in control, because he knew Gerard was in control, he always knew when to stop, when enough turned into too much, and so they would always be safe like this.   
Gerard pulled away, bloody lips licked, but not clean as they kissed Frank’s lips, making Frank smile, tingle just slightly. Then Gerard moved up, just a little, and leaned forward. It took Frank barely a second to register that Gerard was offering himself, offering for Frank to feed.   
Frank swallowed, nervous. Thinking that Gerard must’ve forgotten, must’ve gotten caught up in the moment and not realised how dangerous what he was offering was.   
He gently pushed Gerard back, shaking his head. “No, Gee. Remember. I-”   
“It’ll be okay.” Gerard soothed, leaning back to kiss Frank again, softly. “What if I promise it’ll be okay? You need this, Frank, we need this. Valentine said-”   
Gerard hadn’t forgotten at all. This was deliberate, this was planned. He knew what he was asking of Frank, and he knew that Frank was against it. How could he still, still not listen?   
Frank pushed him back more forcefully and sat up, staring at Gerard who opened his eyes, looking up at Frank almost, just almost submissively.   
Oh God don’t let him see that. Don’t let the Other see that. It’ll be too much to resist. 

“I can’t!” Frank said, the frustration flowing easily into his voice. “Why the fuck do you have to keep trying to trick me, to push me into things I can’t, that I don’t want to do. Gerard what’ll it take to get through to you that I am fucking dangerous? That this… This being inside me is dangerous and it keeps getting more dangerous but you seem intent on putting yourself in worse situations. Your fucking wounds from last time still haven’t healed, and don’t try to pretend like that’s fucking normal because I know it isn’t! What else has to happen to you at it’s hands, at my hands for you to finally understand?”   
Gerard sat up, trying to calm Frank down, trying to sush him, trying to explain. But Frank continued pushing him away and talking over him.   
“Will you make me kill you? Is that it? Will you keep pushing me further and further into the corner until that is all that’s left? Because do not doubt it, Gerard, do not doubt it for a second that your last night on this earth will surely be mine too, or haven’t I made that clear enough yet?” 

A horrific image appeared to Frank then, one that hit him with such suddenness and force it felt like a physical blow. 

In this room, on this bed. The sheets tangled and messy, thrown about. Stains covering it all over, some dark and already drying, some bright and still glisteningly wet.   
An awful, wet, crunching and gulping sound, the sharp overwhelming stench of blood in the air, filling his nose.   
But that was because his nose was literally covered and buried in gore. His naked body was covered in it, his hair matted with it, he would never fully dig it out from his nails, his nails that dug viciously into skin not yet torn by his teeth. And the body beneath him had been so, so destroyed by his teeth. Those sharp, sharp, impossible teeth, how effective they were, how much better than the simple fangs bestowed upon him the night he was turned. He’d already taken chunks out of the neck, already torn at the shoulders and chest, bitten straight through one nipple after he’d sucked and played so delicately. A game, it was all a game and how had he ever hoped to deny himself this joy?   
Now he was buried in the soft flesh of the stomach, gnawing and sucking greedily. One hand gripped tighter to the arm of the body beneath him, drawing deep gashes, then he allowed his hand to travel down, between the legs of this already so mutilated body. Would he do damage here too? He expected so, but he thought he might leave that until last.   
No. No the face he would leave until last. The true beauty, he wasn’t even sure he could destroy it completely, but he did look forward to kissing those lips again, and making them run red with their own blood. He lifted his head, feeling the blood smeared grin on his face, he pushed back his hair with one hand and beheld the beautiful destruction he’d already caused on this so perfect body.   
Then his hand went to his mouth as a trickle of understanding came to him, as he took in the face of what he’d destroyed.   
He threw up the blood and gore of Gerard, staining the bed a new shade of red. 

Frank snapped out of this horror show as he landed with a thud on the floor. His hand was still to his mouth, as if he might still be sick.   
He felt hands on him, trying to help him up, he pushed them away until he could finally focus. And he saw Gerard above him, alive and whole, the only red was the blood still just clinging to his lips. Frank’s blood. That was okay. That was fine. Not Gerard’s blood, only his, that was safe.   
Frank looked over himself, needing the further confirmation that the hallucination, the vision had truly been only that.   
But even then, even assured he had done no harm to Gerard, he had the overwhelming sense that it was a communication from The Other. 

Frank hurried to his feet, and moved further away from Gerard, shaking his head.   
“Frank?” Gerard said, anxiously. “Frank? What was that? Was it… Some kind of vision? Something from the Other? Please, Frank, you know you need to tell me whatever is going on.” 

Tears were in Frank’s eyes as he backed towards the door, grabbing the excess clothes that’d been taken off as he‘d settled into the bed. He shook his head. He couldn’t, he couldn’t bring himself to even articulate what he’d seen. What he’d done and felt in that vision.   
Gerard was getting out of the bed, following him, and Frank feared he might, might just try to stop him.   
“Frank. No, don’t. You can’t just leave. We need, you know we need to deal with this. I promise… I know what I’m doing, okay, Valentine said-”   
It was a split second, and perhaps in another version of events, Gerard might have been the one to make the move, and shift the power, the outcome the other way. But as it was, Frank was the one to gain the upper hand, his hand clamped around Gerard’s throat, pinning him to the wall.   
When he spoke his voice was quiet, just barely masking the fear, the anger beneath the surface. “Understand just how much it is taking me to fight this. And stop making the fight harder for me.” 

And, of course, when he was released, Gerard had no time to halt Frank any longer.   
It scared him that perhaps, just perhaps, he hadn’t actually wanted to try. 

////

Frank wandered the night aimlessly.   
He’d wanted, needed to clear his head. That was all. Just clear his head, and then he could go back to Gerard. And they could talk, again, calmly.  
They could get through this. He knew it.  
Then he thought of his hand… His hand on Gerard’s throat, he’d never, never wilfully hurt Gerard like that, not when he was of his own mind. It scared him, but he’d known, in that moment he’d been more scared of what would happen if Gerard didn’t let him leave. If he didn’t get away, and get some space, some distance.  
The horrific images of the vision came back to him, and with it came that dull, persistent ache.  
Just to add to the horrors, now those thoughts were making him hungry.   
Fuck, when had he last fed anyway? Had he fed from Tate? He still didn’t know… There was no recollection, but either way, there was no denying the need now.  
Perhaps it was merely the fact that Gerard had offered himself, that blood had been so close to hand, and Frank had denied it, that made him so hungry now.   
He had to hope it was that, not the vision that caused it. He wasn’t sure he could handle it otherwise.   
What could he do though? He couldn’t hunt, not by himself, and he wasn’t ready, wasn’t clear enough to go back to Gerard, to ask for his help. Did he go to someone else? Should he go to Mikey? Would Mikey even know how to help him? It wasn’t like Frank could ask Mikey to… To do what Gerard did to make feeding easier, but maybe Mikey could be there to restrain Frank? When it got too much? Mikey was more than strong enough for that, so maybe, this one time, he could go to him to help him hunt.   
But there was a throbbing in his head, something he hadn’t noticed before, or perhaps something that usually came when all the other symptoms got so bad they drowned it out. It was undeniable though. There was no time, no time for help, no time for back up. What he needed, he needed now.   
Oh fuck, the Other really was getting stronger, wasn’t it? 

It was like an invisible pull, it guided him. Like something, something knew exactly where to find exactly what he wanted, what he needed.   
Although Frank thought this was purely the Other’s influence, of course he had no way of knowing that all vampires had this instinct in them, it was part of what made them such effective hunters, instinct led them to the arms of the ones they would devour. It was only the intensity with which Frank felt it that set him apart. 

There were a few hotels and motels scattered in town, and usually Frank overlooked them and their overpriced bars entirely. He’d heard Gerard talk about them sometimes, saying they were handy places to hunt, especially as each one had at least one member of the night shift that was one of their own. Perfect for any extra helped needed for clean up. Gerard had told him that, though the cliché of out of towners being an easy target was occasionally true, it also tended to lead to more difficult questions further down the line. Too many attacks in one hotel in a short space of time, people would start to notice, so they kept their visits there to a minimum.   
Tonight, however, there was no denying that this was where Frank needed to be. 

As soon as he stepped into the bar, Frank felt a certain quiet calm fall over him. Something telling him this was right. His prey was near, as was his release he so needed. Frank forget to be afraid of this idea, to be afraid of feeding. It felt so natural, so right. How could he possibly be afraid of something he was literally created to do?   
He settled down at the bar and waited, knowing that if he did just this, just waited, the prey would come to him. 

It took less time than he’d expected.   
He knew the moment he saw, out of the corner of his eye, someone sit on the stool beside him, that this was the one. His very veins hummed, in anticipation of the blood they would soon receive.   
He turned his head, smiling very slightly, ready to greet his new companion.   
And in an instant, his heart dropped, a feeling of heavy cold settled in his stomach.   
Shit. Oh shit, but he was so young. The boy that sat beside him was so young, younger than he’d been when he’d been made a wolf, and younger that Tate was now. Old enough to drink, yes, but surely not much more than that.  
Frank welcomed this remorse, this regret, it made him feel more himself. Even if every other inch of him still called for the boys blood, for the boys flesh, and life.   
The boy caught Frank looking, and glanced away, nervously.   
Frank turned his smile more kind, and leant in a little. “Hey.” He said, getting the feeling he had to go gentle with the boy, to start with anyway.   
The boy blushed and Frank was a little overwhelmed to note that he was, indeed, beautiful. Not in the same league as his Gerard, of course, no one was. But still, not at all bad for his first, true, lone kill. He could be proud of what he’d reeled in.   
The boy chewed his lip, then finally fully looked up at Frank, and he smiled, still clearly shy. “Hi.” He replied.   
Frank swallowed, immediately noting the accent.  
Tourist.   
Perfect.   
“Well, there’s an accent not from this neck of the woods.” Frank allowed himself a mental eye roll for that unintended pun.   
The boy smiled, shrugged.   
Frank laughed. “Wow, you’re really not gonna make this easy for me, are you?”   
The boy bit his lip again and, holy shit, he’d actually chewed on it enough to make it bleed a little already. Far, far too tempting to Frank at this point in their little game.   
“Sorry.” The boy replied. “I… I’m a. Little new to this.”  
Frank raised his eyebrow. “Talking to people?” He asked, teasingly.   
“No. Um. I guess. Um… Talking to guys in. Um. Trying to. Maybe. Flirt with them?”   
And now Frank full on laughed, causing the boy to duck his head, clearly embarrassed. “Well, yeah, I hate to break it to you, your flirting skills are… Awful.”   
Then he paused, leaning in closer. “But you’re fucking cute, so it doesn’t really matter.”   
The boy blushed, leaning away to quickly finish his drink.   
Again, Frank laughed, then pointed at the glass. “Want another?”   
The boy nodded. “Thank you.” 

It took only the amount of time to drink that second glass before Frank managed to persuade him that maybe they’d be more comfortable continuing their conversation upstairs. 

Naturally, conversation was the last things on their minds once they got behind the closed door of the hotel.   
Frank could sense it from the boy, this wasn’t the sort of thing he usually did, he was being reckless and maybe, just maybe if Frank paid a little attention to the room they’d stepped into he’d have an idea why.   
There were two beds in the room, two suitcases, one of the beds strewn with clothes distinctly unlike the clothes the boy was wearing. He did pick up on the two different scents of body spray though, both male. The red light on the hotel phone was flashing, declaring a message awaited the occupants of the room. 

The bed that had a laptop and headphones, plus a pair of dark jeans and a possibly leather, possibly fake jacket on it was hurriedly cleared by the boy, who sat, nervously, on the edge, waiting for Frank to make the moves.   
So young, so new. He feels fragile, needy. Please. Do we have to? Can we spare him? Frank begged with the darker part of himself, not sure if he was begging for mercy for the boy, or for himself.   
Yes. So young… Imagine how good he’ll taste.   
There was no mercy from the Other. It didn’t understand that word. How could it? 

Frank stood in front of the boy, the leaned down, brushing his hand back through the soft brown hair. He kissed him gently, carefully, and he heard the boy gasp, felt him. These were the last few moments when Frank still could have full control, and he allowed himself that sadness again. Understanding the experiences the boy would have with him, they would be his first experiences of this kind.   
And also his last.   
Frank tasted the blood on the boys lip, that the boy himself had drawn, and he felt himself already start to slip. Now he indulged himself in the knowledge of how beautiful the boy was, and how glad he was for it.   
He hoped he wouldn’t destroy this beauty completely. 

It all seemed to happen in odd, shutter-like stages, nothing quite connecting as it should. Frank didn’t fully black out at any time, but snatches of time were missing.   
He remembered pushing the boy down onto the bed, kisses intensifying, the boy was clearly not inexperienced here and it was good, hot and just a little bit sweet.   
He missed the bit where their shirts came off, coming back in just as he was undoing the boys belt, rubbing him through his jeans, the boys soft, soft moans filling the air.   
And then, after another jump cut, fully naked, the covers pulled back, the boy moving, needy beneath him, grabbing at Frank’s hair, kissing him with intensity.   
The noise and want for blood was loud, louder than the boys moans, but Frank was delaying it, delaying the moment, savouring. Perhaps he could pretend it was an act of mercy, but he knew that was untrue. His fangs ached with need and he knew how sweet it would feel to let them sink into this flesh beneath his hands. The other ache, the other need, the want for sex was obvious, and it was a thrill to also feel the boy was hard, wanting.   
Another minute or so stolen from time, and the boy was on his front, crying out softly, burying his face in the pillow. Frank hadn’t yet bitten him, his skin was still clear and unblemished, but he was inside him, and as expected, the boy was tight, and it felt so good. He heard the boy panting, begging Frank to stop, wait, wait, he needed a second. And, surprising even himself, Frank did. He waited for the boy to get his breath back, then nod, signalling to continue.   
The next time Frank was aware, he was deep, possibly too deep inside the boy, and there were tears staining the pillow, the boys hands gripping the sheets tightly, his mouth open wide, wide, gasping, unable to get enough breath out, let alone any words.   
Then a moan pushed through the boys mouth and Frank realised as much as it hurt, the boy still liked it. And that felt so, so intoxicatingly good.  
So he started moving a little faster, and finally he brought his mouth down to the boys neck, mouth open wide, he sunk his fangs in suddenly, with force. The boy screamed, in pain, in shock.  
And then the true black out came.

But. This time it didn’t last.   
While the Other pushed and pushed him to be harsher, crueller, to bruise the skin beneath his hands, to tear and ruin the body, to bite and gnaw and ravage the neck and shoulders, soak his face in blood, Frank, for the very first time felt able to truly push back.   
And, he got results.  
Coming back out of the black out, still feeding, still tearing a little, but not as vicious. He had… An odd sensation, one of control. Something he hadn’t felt when feeding save from the time Gerard had… Helped.   
He felt the life beneath him ebbing away, gasping out slightly pained, slightly pleasurable sighs. And Frank pulled away, quickly, suddenly over come with the understanding that this release from the Others hold could very well be temporary.   
He sat up, wiping at his mouth, not realising that he was merely spreading the blood around. He got up from the bed, looking briefly down out his prey.  
The breathing was shallow, and death wasn’t far, at least it looked like the boy would pass peacefully. His neck bled and blossomed onto the pillow and bed sheets, slightly matting his hair.   
More blood lower down on the sheets, from the tears he had created inside the sweet virgin. It didn’t seem horrific though, this didn’t look like the mutilated scenes Frank had been faced with before. It looked almost poetic. And Frank felt calm, full, and satisfied.   
With a small smile Frank noted that the boy hand his hand between his legs, lightly touching himself, though the hand was still now as his strength diminished away.

He re-dressed unhurriedly and took time to go into the bathroom, clean himself up. Again, he noticed there were two sets of toiletries, two tooth brushes, two face cleansers.   
Somehow he never once considered what that might mean. 

As he left he gave one more look over to the bed, he listened closely, the heartbeat getting ever softer.  
“Thank you.” He said, and finally left. 

He passed another young boy on the stairs down to the lobby. He noted the anxious expression, but of course he had no reason to put two and two together.   
And he had no reason to guess just what had been set in motion now.


	8. My Bleeding Fucking Heart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finally, a break through with the Other, and it starts to look like Frank has some hope of gaining some control.   
> But, a new problem has presented itself, and the decisions made will have lasting repercussions for everyone.

“Are you sure?” Gerard asked as they reached the door.   
Frank nodded. “I’m sure. It was definitely this one.” He glanced at the number again, picking it out from his memory. He’d made sure to remember so he could pass it on to Gerard, knowing he’d know about clean up.  
That was when he’d thought clean up was literally going to be about getting rid of a body and cleaning the room of blood. 

Truth was, nothing had gone quite the way Frank had been expecting.   
He’d returned home to Gerard, full of pride and excitement at what he’d achieved. Ready to apologise for storming out, hoping for a reconciliation. 

They’d embraced at the door, and Gerard had simply been relieved to see Frank home.  
Then Frank had told him what had happened.   
And Gerard hadn’t been pleased, or excited as Frank had hoped.   
He was panicked, and perhaps a little bit angry, though of course he tried not to show Frank how angry.  
Gerard had explained to Frank exactly what he’d done, and why they had to go back now.  
They had to finish it. 

They stopped in front of the door, and Frank felt his body temperature spike. He was embarrassed, so embarrassed he’d fucked up this much. It was ridiculous, wasn’t it? Why had he never picked up on the fact they never, never left someone breathing. 

“It’s okay.” Gerard said, softly, taking Frank’s hand. “If he was close to death, ending it should be easy.”  
“I had control, just for a moment, and I wanted to take it while I still could.”   
“It’s fine.” Gerard said. “That’s understandable, given everything that’s happened. Now, though, we have to end it. And it doesn’t have to hurt him. It’ll be a mercy.”   
Frank nodded. He knew. He understood now what he’d done. He’d left the kid in a limbo state. He couldn’t die, and he couldn’t get better. Not without a vampire’s intervention. 

Frank’s eyes were closed, readying himself for what waited inside, the task ahead. He felt Gerard’s hand squeeze his. Despite all the other people inhabiting the hotel, the corridor had that usual hush of all hotel corridors, leading Frank to believe it was just them two. Just for a few more seconds. These moments, these rare quiet moments. It felt like these were what kept him going.   
Frank nodded, he was ready.   
Gerard had just slipped the skeleton key card into the door, when, suddenly, the door sprung open by itself. 

They both stared at the figure the other side of the door.   
Immediately Gerard looked to Frank, searching for answers, but of course he had none.   
Then Frank remembered.  
The two of everything in the room.   
The boy he’d passed on his way out.   
This was him. This was the boy’s room mate.   
Shit. 

The boy stood, drawing himself up to his full height, clearly wanting to appear intimidating. Frank got the distinct expression that on any normal day this would not be something the boy could pull off, but now, today, it was working pretty well.   
His jaw clenched, mouth a grim line, blue eyes hard and narrowed, it all looked unnatural to the boys face and yet, that only made it more intense now.   
It wasn’t much for Frank and Gerard to work out what’d happened here. The boy had come back to his room, and found his friend… In the state Frank had left him in.  
Gerard opened his mouth, to come up with a reasonable explanation for them trying to get into the room, but the boy was having none of it.   
“Don‘t!” He snapped, his eyes closing tight.   
Then he pointed inside the room. Clear instructions. 

Frank stepped in first, immediately saw that the first bed, the bed he’d left the other boy in was empty, stripped of it’s covers, though still there were dark stains on the naked mattress.   
He soon saw the mound of bed sheets on the second bed that indicated he’d been moved to the other one instead.   
Frank made a tentative step towards the second bed, but he halted when he heard the other boy snap. “Stay away from him! Stay back! I know it was you! I saw you, I saw you leaving the hotel! I know you did this to him! You did this!”   
Frank turned, blinking, shocked at this sudden outburst from the boy who’d seemed so calm.   
Gerard took a step closer to the traumatised boy, hands out, calming, soothing noises passing his lips. “It’s okay, it’s okay. Look, Frank isn’t going to get any closer to him, see.”  
Hand’s on the boy’s shoulders, leading him back, easily to a chair against the wall. The boy sat, while Gerard knelt before him.   
“Good. Now. If we just… Stay calm. We can figure out what the next step here is.”   
The boy pulled back from Gerard’s gentle hold. “There’s no figuring out to do. I’ve told you. One of you is going to make Dan okay again, and that’s the end of it.”   
Gerard sighed, frowning with a kind of patient smile you give to those who aren’t accepting bad news. “Can I ask your name?”   
The boy looked momentarily cautious, his eyes shifting in an unsettled gesture. Eventually he gave up. “Phil.” He said.   
“Alright. Phil. I’m not sure what you think you know about what happened here but-”  
“I know that Dan was attacked by a vampire.”   
Frank snorted. Not the most gracious thing in the situation, but it was out before he could help it.  
Phil glared daggers at him. Gerard ignored him, placing a hand on Phil’s shoulder, bringing his attention back.  
“Vampire? Huh. That’s a pretty interesting conclusion to come to.”  
Phil rolled his eyes. “Oh, don’t do that. Don’t act as if I’m making it up. I’ll have you know I’m the biggest Buffy fan around, I know a vampire attack when I see one.”   
Gerard looked closely at him. Eyes searching deep into Phil’s and he knew, there was no point trying to fool him. Pop culture references aside, the kid knew what was up.   
So, Gerard nodded. “Okay. Fine. Yes, your friend was… Bitten by a vampire.”   
“Just so you know.” Frank piped up, coming closer to them both, sitting down on the edge of the stripped bed. “It wasn’t an attack. Alright, what I did to your friend? That wasn’t an attack. Wasn‘t even close.”   
Phil’s jaw was clenched once more, glaring at Frank. “You say it wasn’t an attack? Then explain all the blood. Explain why his- his neck and shoulder is a- a- mess. I couldn’t get it to stop! I couldn’t get it to stop bleeding! And- and I saw what else you did- you- you forced yourself on him. I understand you need to feed to live, but why did you have to-” He stopped, swallowing hard, holding back tears, doing a good job of it too. “You didn’t have to- to sleep with him.“ His voice had gone quiet. “That’s not right. It’s not right. We were supposed to… I’d promised. I’d promised...”   
And, with those words, all the cockiness and snark that had built up in Frank over the last few minutes fell away. Suddenly, suddenly he understood. His hand went to his mouth, and he felt sick.   
“He’s not just your friend, is he?” Frank asked, quietly. Gerard turned his head, eyes wide at Frank, a few steps behind him in figuring the situation out. He looked back just in time to see Phil shake his head.   
“I had no idea.” Frank said, softly.   
Phil closed his eyes, tight, hanging his head. “We… We’d had a fight, earlier. Dan… Dan wants to go public, about us. He has done for ages, but. I keep saying we should keep it quiet, between us, for now. It’s private, you know? Then. Tonight we… He had a big fight about it and, Dan said it seemed like I was ashamed, and if that was the case… Why were we even bothering. I tried to tell him it wasn’t that but… In the end he said.” Phil drew a deep breath in before continuing. “He said that if I wanted to break up, I should just say so. He. He left before I could say anything else.”   
Phil looked up then. “I didn’t want that, and I still don’t. I’m not going to let him- let him die thinking that’s what I want. So.” With a resolute nod, Phil stared straight at Frank. “You are going to fix what you did. You are going to make Dan okay again, and then I will make the biggest, grandest most spectacular show of telling everyone that me and him are together. Sound like a plan?”   
Frank and Gerard glanced at each other, sad looks exchanged, a silent communication of regret for this poor young couple.

Gerard looked up at Phil, and explained, calmly. “Phil. I need you to understand. Dan is not… There’s no ‘making him okay again’.”   
Gerard moved closer, and continued. “When Frank fed from him, he took him to the point of death, but not quite past it. Dan is currently… In a limbo state. He can’t, and won’t die as he is. But he cannot get better, and he will not heal. Had Frank stopped sooner, then yes. He would’ve been weak, sick for a couple of days, maybe less, and he would have been left with scars, for life, but he would have got better.”  
Phil nodded, as if he was taking this in, but Gerard knew, he knew he wasn’t. How could they possibly expect him to comprehend this?   
“Phil.” Frank said, gently. “We only have the one option.”   
To this, Phil shook his head. “No. Not just one. You have two.”  
Both vampires frowned. “Phil. I don’t think you-”  
“I understand what you’re saying.” Phil said. “You’re saying you can’t make him better, get him to heal? But there is an alternative. You can turn him.”   
Again. The vampires looked at each other, this time surprised, shocked even.   
“Phil, we-”  
“I want him back. I don’t care if it means him coming back as… Something else. Just. Tell me one thing, just one thing, then you can ask me if I’m sure.”  
Frank and Gerard nodded, listening.   
“If you bring him back… If you turn him. He’ll… He’ll still be him, right? He’ll still be Dan?”   
Gerard shifted back, resting his head against the end of the bed, beside Frank. Frank offered his hand down to him, and Gerard took it, squeezing gently.   
“Yes. Vampires don’t loose the personality they had before they were turned. As someone who has turned both my brother, and my soul mate, I can promise you that. The changes are in needs, and lifestyle, not in who they are.”   
Phil nodded, taking this in. “Okay. That’s all I need to know.”

Gerard looked up at Frank, having only an idea of just how this could all be effecting him. The first time he tried to hunt alone, and now it looked like they were going to have another vampire to look after.   
He’s too young, too new himself to be expected to help a new vampire. We’ll have to hand him over to the coven, hope they’ll take him in. Maybe Mikey will look after him? 

Frank looked up at Phil, then around the room, smiling slightly. “You two travel a lot?”   
Phil shrugged. “A little, I guess.”  
“Not anymore. Not if we turn him. Vampires survive by staying together, it’s how we keep ourselves hidden. Me and Gerard, we don’t live with the others around here, but we stay close. If we turn him, he can only go where there are other vampires, and even then, it’s safest to stay with those who turned you. Not all covens are welcoming of outsider vampires.”   
Phil nodded, slowly. Clearly this hadn’t occurred to him. But, all credit to him, he replied quickly. “Okay. Well. We can work that out, I’m sure.”  
“And you realise he will need to hunt, right? What you witnessed tonight? He will have to do that himself, are you going to be able to handle that?”   
Now there was hesitation, Phil’s eyes straying to the bed, nervously. Then, slowly, he nodded. “If it’s what it takes to keep him alive, fine.”   
Then he looked over to the other bed, where Dan was still hidden under the covers. “Will… Will I still be able to stay with him? Will we… Will our relationship still… Be possible? Or. Or will… Will he want to. To kill me? I mean, will it be too hard, to resist, feeding from me?”   
Frank shrugged, looking down at Gerard, who quickly took up the thread of the conversation. “It’ll be hard, especially to begin with, when he’s still new. I might suggest giving him periods of time out of your presence. But, it’ll get easier. He can bite you and not do lasting damage, but I would advise against you trying that in the first year or so, as it’ll be too easy for him to forget to stop. Otherwise, it’s not too hard to keep those urges in check, so long as he’s getting his blood from elsewhere.”   
Gerard shifted forward. “That’s not the hardest part though. You see, when we turn him, this is where he stops. The legends are all true there. He will never grow any older than he is tonight. And he will not die of any natural means.”  
Gerard closed his eyes, transported back only months ago, when this had been the very thing that had scared him the most. “But, of course, you will continue to get older, and, eventually that reality will sink in to Dan, and he will have to comprehend… A time when you’re not there.”   
Frank’s hand squeezed Gerard’s, hard now.   
“And if anything is going to make him push you away, it’ll be that.”   
Frank looked at Phil now, saw the conflict, the true understanding of everything he was asking, of the fate he was giving to Dan.   
“I probably shouldn’t even say this but… I feel it’s only right we offer…”   
Another glance between the vampires.   
“If we do this, we understand if you want to be turned too. It’ll be harder to begin with, but, in the long run…”   
Phil shook his head. “No. Not. Not me, not yet. I need… He’ll need me, looking after him, won’t he?”   
Frank considered those early days after the turn, how he’d barely felt the strength to get out of bed. He nodded. “Yeah. He’ll need you.”   
“Then I’ll wait. Maybe… Maybe later? When he’s… When he’s settled? Maybe then I can… I can join him then?”   
Frank smiled. “So long as we’re around, I promise you that’ll always be an option.”   
To this, Phil nodded slowly. “Okay. Okay then. Then I’m sure. Help him. Please?” 

They tried to convince Phil to leave the room, but he wouldn’t budge.   
“Phil, this isn’t going to be pleasant or easy to watch, maybe just go downstairs for a bit? We can call you when he’s awake.”  
But Phil refused, shaking his head more and more violently. “No. I’m staying with him.”   
He did agree to stay the other side of the room, out of the way, however. 

Frank moved towards the occupied bed, realising that blankets and jackets and all manner of things had been piled up by Phil in an attempt to keep Dan warm. Frank was immediately touched by the care and the worry that had gone into this.   
He realised this, this was why they hadn’t simply done what they’d had to when Phil got in their way. They’d sensed it, the love and affection here.   
How could they kill something so like themselves?   
Frank pulled back each layer just as carefully as they had been placed, slowly bringing Dan into view.   
He was shaking, heavily, a sheen of sweat covered his face, seeping through to his hair.   
Gerard was just behind Frank, watching over this scene. He leaned gently into his lover and whispered, quietly enough so Phil couldn’t hear. “You picked well, for your first lone hunt.”   
Frank rolled his eyes, jabbing him in the side with his elbow. “Is that really appropriate? Now? With his boyfriend in the room?”   
Gerard smiled, and kissed Frank on the cheek.   
Another blanket pulled back and finally they saw Phil’s attempt to stop the bleeding at Dan’s neck. He’d done a good job of this too. Bundles of cotton wool, layered over a dressing, held down with gauze and medical tape.   
It was all dark with red.   
Phil had obviously taken the time to redress Dan also, a loose tshirt and underwear could now be seen as Frank pushed back the final cover. Both items were wet and sticking from the sweat that covered him.   
Gerard pushed Frank gently back, in order to get a better look.   
“He’s far along.” Gerard said after a quick look over, the back of his hand placed against Dan’s skin, he winced. “Really far along.”  
“Is it still… Is it still possible? Can you do it?” Frank asked, glancing over at Phil, knowing there was no way he could tell him if they couldn’t do this.  
Gerard looked up at him, then nodded. “Yeah. Yes I can do this.”   
Then he laughed, shortly. “Shit, the other vampires really aren’t going to believe me when I say I’m not trying to start another coven when they hear about this.”   
“Screw the others.” Frank said sharply. He had his own ideas on this, but now was not the time. Gerard grinned at him, and Frank wondered if maybe Gerard was starting to think the same as he was in that moment.   
Gerard nodded. “Okay. Yes. This is fine, doable. Probably easier than turning you anyway.” Another grin. “At least this time I don’t have to worry about bringing a werewolf back at the same time.”   
Frank punched him, gently in the arm. “I think you’ll find I was the one that did the hauling on that part.”   
Gerard shrugged, teasing him. “You go, stay with Phil, he’ll need someone to reassure him everything that’s happening is normal.”   
Frank nodded, went to get up. Then he paused, looking Dan over, carefully.  
“Gee?”  
“Mmm?”   
“You don’t think… I can’t have… You know. Passed on anything. Um. I won’t have given him any… Taints of the Other? Will I?”   
Gerard didn’t answer right away. Then he looked up. “The Other isn’t a virus, it can’t be passed on.” He smiled, gently, placing a hand on Frank’s shoulder. “And we’ll get back to figuring out more about him once we clear this up.”   
Frank nodded, got up to go to Phil.   
He realised how nice it was, not worrying about the Other, just for a little while. 

Gerard looked at the bandage at Dan’s neck, considering it closely, before deciding against removing it yet. It wasn’t necessary.   
Then, leaning close to the other side of Dan, he tested his fangs, gently against the skin, pleased when he felt a reaction from Dan, a shudder through his body. That was good, the fact there was still a response.   
Then he pierced the skin. 

Over the other side of the room, Phil made to lunge forward, but Frank caught him in time. “I- I- Thought you said you were going to turn him!”   
“He is.” Frank said, soothingly. “He is, I promise.”  
“Then why is he-”  
Frank guided Phil to sit back down, talking softly. “Because, he has to die first. I took him to the edge, Gerard is taking him those last few steps.”   
Phil was staring, unable to look away. “You promise?”   
“I promise.” Frank said, gently.   
And in perfect timing, they saw Gerard pull away.   
Not a drop of blood smeared his mouth, and once again Frank felt envious of the beautiful skill Gerard possessed.   
Phil was still staring, and he’d turned so pale he was vaguely translucent.   
The shaking that had had such a violent hold on Dan had stopped.   
Frank put an arm around Phil, pulled him close. “If you need to leave now, it’s okay, we can do that.”  
Phil shook his head.   
“Okay then. Watch Gee.” 

There was none of the nerves he’d felt when he’d last done this. They were in less unsure territory, and even though he had an audience, Gerard felt much less pressure.  
Fact was, it wasn’t his soul mates life that was in the balance this time.   
He’d already propped up the pillows, sitting back, bringing Dan with him into a easier position for the next part.  
Wrist at his own mouth, a simple bite. Then Gerard held the wound just above the boys lips, first letting a few drops fall, then pressing closer.   
Gerard watched him, closely, a small frown of concentration on his face.   
A few drips, not quite making it into Dan’s mouth, slid down his cheek.   
Phil flinched, had to look away. Frank’s heart swelled for him. This was so hard, so hard for Phil, he knew it. With all he and Gerard had had to endure, how could he not understand?   
And how could he not understand the need to stay here, to watch over while such difficult things happened? Frank squeezed Phil’s shoulder, surprised when the boy turned towards him and buried his face against Frank’s chest.   
Frank was momentarily too shocked to respond. But then, he held him close, rubbing the boys back soothingly. “It’s okay.” He said, quietly. “I promise it’s all okay.”   
Gerard had closed his eyes. Was humming softly to distract himself from the fact this was already starting to hurt. Foolish, he hadn’t hunted tonight, hadn’t had a chance. But he did have Frank’s blood, at least, that counted for a lot.   
C’mon kid. Don’t keep me waiting like Frank did.   
And then, almost as a direct response to that silent plea, Gerard felt a dull tug at the wound. His eyes flew open, and he looked down.  
Sure enough, there the tug came again.  
The boy was responding, already sucking at the blood offered to him. It wasn’t strong, but it was enough.   
Gerard looked up, and caught Frank’s eye. Frank raised an eyebrow, questioningly, and Gerard nodded, grinning.   
Frank pushed Phil back a little, whispered to him, “If you wanna look now… Dan’s responding.”   
Phil turned around, hesitantly, and saw just as Dan’s left hand twitched, then grabbed at the bed sheets.   
Gerard winced, then laughed as a harder, stronger tug suddenly hit him as Dan took a deeper pull of blood.   
“Holy shit. We’ve got a strong one.”   
Phil edged closer, leaning in, trying to get a better look. Frank pulled him back gently. “Stay back, just for now. Can’t interfere with this, okay?”   
Phil nodded, but still leant forward. 

For the next few minutes, Gerard tipped his head back, eyes closed, occasionally wincing, but never once pulling away.   
Then, finally, with a little effort and a grimace, Gerard pried his wrist away. Bringing it up to his own mouth to lick clean.   
He was panting, softly from the effort, and Frank immediately went over to help him up.   
Both careful about moving the newborn vampire, Frank let Gerard lean on him as he got up from the bed. “You need some from me now?” Frank offered, quietly. Gerard nodded. “Not now though, wait until we get home?”   
“Okay. If you need it before though-”  
“I’ll be fine.” 

Phil had stood up, edging towards the bed as Frank and Gerard moved away from it.   
Dan laid on the bed, quite still, on his side, slightly curled up. He was faced away from Phil, and from this angle it looked like nothing remarkable at all had happened to him tonight.   
Once Frank had seen that Gerard was fine, and unlikely to collapse after the act, he came back over to Dan.  
“Hold on a second, Phil. I know you wanna see, but hold on.” He said, with a small grin.   
Frank sat on the edge of the bed, and gently rolled Dan onto his back.   
Phil gasped quietly. The blood used to turn him smeared Dan’s lips and chin, and those trickles remained on his cheek.   
Frank paid no attention to Phil’s reaction, leaning across and pulling away the tape that held down the bandages at Dan’s neck.   
Frank looked up at Phil, grinned, and beckoned him closer. “Wanna see something cool?”   
Phil looked terrified, obviously not wanting to be faced with the horror of what laid beneath all that bandage again. But, trustingly, if hesitantly, he leant forward.   
Frank watched him as his eyes went wider as, slowly, but more rapidly that humanly possible, the wounds began to heal over.   
“He’ll always have some sort of scar there.” Frank explained. “Because it happened before he turned but, it won’t look so bad as it could have.”   
Phil nodded, and Frank thought, but couldn’t be sure that he saw tears in the boys eyes. He looked back at Dan, saw him swallow once, twice, again. Frank held his hand out toward Phil, ushering him back. “Okay, okay, bit of distance alright Phil? Just in case.” 

Eyelids fluttered and then a loud gasp.  
His eyes opened suddenly, and, immediately he tried to sit up, startled.   
He fell back as soon as he tried.   
Frank caught him before he could hit his head against the headboard. “Whoa, whoa there kid, take it slow alright?”   
Dan blinked, staring at him. “You- You’re the guy I met? Downstairs and we-” A look of horror passed over his face. “Oh. Oh no. No. No. Oh I’m sorry, I made a huge mistake. I’m so sorry, I should’ve told you. I- I- Where’s Phil? I need to talk to Phil I-”   
Frank glanced over, to the other bed, and Dan followed his line of sight, to where Phil sat, knees drawn up close to him, hands over his face, crying heavily now.  
“Phil!” Dan tried to sit up again, reaching out to Phil as he did. Frank helped prop him up, then moved back, getting up from the bed just as Phil pushed himself off the other one. “Phil. Fuck. Fuck. I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry. Please, do you forgive me? I didn’t mean it. I don’t, I don’t want this to be the end, I can’t- I can’t be without you.” This only made Phil cry harder, the reality that he really, truly, had Dan back hitting him hard, the truth that he’d nearly lost him for good feeling far too real now it had passed.   
He went directly into Dan’s waiting arms, and held him tight. Dan held him as tight as his strength would allow.   
Frank watched, smiling very slightly. He went back over to Gerard, curled up close to him, just in time to see Dan frown, growing more confused.   
“Phil? Phil I’m sorry, please stop crying. Phil… Why don’t I remember you getting here? Or… Or moving into your bed? Why do I feel… So strange?”   
And then, there it came, that final blow of a question. “Phil. Why… Why do you smell different?”   
Frank closed his eyes, and turned his head.   
The two of them had a long road ahead of them. And, Frank knew, it was all going to be part of his and Gerard’s road too. 

Phil’s sobbing subsided, enough to start explaining to Dan what had happened. Of course he didn’t believe it easily, but when your own body is your evidence, he couldn’t exactly deny it for long.   
And then it was Dan’s turn at the crying jag, and at first Phil feared he was angry for the decision Phil had made on his part. But, when words finally came to him again, Dan thanked him, overwhelmed that Phil would take on that kind of decision for him.   
“You- You stood up to vampires for me?”   
“Well, I wasn’t letting you get away that easy. You’re stuck with me, Danny.”   
As the couple embraced, Frank and Gerard took that as their cue to finally leave. 

“We’ll be back tomorrow, with some… Spare supplies we have.” Gerard said, looking between both of them. “Until then, Dan, stay rested as long as you can, and do not, whatever you do, try to go outside.” He looked over at Phil now. “I trust he’s is good hands with you?”  
There was no question of that. And no doubts to be had. 

////

They reached home, both feeling exhausted, Gerard even more so.  
Sitting heavily on the couch, Gerard sighed, his hand covering his face, rubbing at his eyes.   
Frank sat more tentatively, watching him, figuring out where, how they could start to talk, about any of this. 

“It’s good.” Gerard finally broke the silence. “I didn’t take the chance to say it earlier. But it’s good you were able to control yourself, however briefly tonight. It’s a breakthrough. We should be pleased about that.”   
Frank nodded. “I still don’t know… How? And why now, after The Other showed itself at fullest strength, how was I-”  
Gerard opened his eyes suddenly and sat up. “It pushed itself too far.” He said it not as a question, but as a fact. “It makes perfect sense. By pushing it’s will upon you, going against what you wanted when you hadn’t allowed it it’s… Usual path in, it over reached itself. It didn’t have the strength in it to fight you when you pushed it back.”   
Gerard looked at Frank, and grinned. “It has it’s limits. And it can weaken. Frank. This is good. This is… This is very good.”   
Frank stared, blinking, taking this in.   
The Other had weaknesses? It could loose strength?   
Did he dare hope there really was a way to control it? 

Gerard shifted up, closer to Frank, took his hand. “And. I spoke to Valentine. I can help you, he said I can help you become stronger, so you can overpower the Other, take control of it. Frank, if we can harness the strength and power of the Other… You’ll be… The power you’ll have will be…”   
Frank briefly allowed himself to go along with this idea, swept up with it, so many possibilities, so much hope.   
But, the other side of the truth hit with startling clarity.   
“But what if I can’t? What if I can’t… Harness and control it? What happens then? Did you and Valentine talk about that?”   
Gerard looked away, the hope and happiness in his eyes fading as suddenly as it had sprung up. It was all the answer Frank needed.   
“So it’s as bad as we feared?”   
Silence filled the room, and Frank took in a long, deep breath, letting it out slowly.  
He spoke quietly, his head down. “If. If it get’s to that… If it gets to that point. Just, promise me something?”   
Gerard looked up at him, waiting to hear what he was promising to before agreeing.   
“If The Other wins, if I’m not coming back, don’t try to save it. Don’t try and protect The Other. And don’t get in the way of whoever tries to stop The Other. We both know… If it gets loose. It can’t. We can’t let it live.” 

Frank looked up, waiting for Gerard’s response. “Understand?” He asked. “It won’t be me you’re protecting anymore, so don’t try.”   
Finally, Gerard nodded.   
“I. I promise.” 

Then he smiled, very slightly. “But. We’re not gonna let it get to that point. You’re gonna win, and I’m going to help, in every way I can.”   
Frank managed a weak smile back. “Okay. So tell me, what did Valentine say? How can you help me?”   
Gerard rolled his eyes. “Well… If you’d listened earlier…”   
Frank blinked. “Wait. Wait. You mean…. Feeding from you? Gerard, the Other fed from you and-”  
“And! Look at the timeline, The Other got stronger again after feeding from me. And it got stronger after.. Uh…”  
Frank waved his hand, as if batting this particular detail away. “Yeah, yeah after sleeping with you, okay. I get it. So… You give The Other power. How does that help me? Us?”   
Gerard tutted. “How are you missing the point, still? It’s not just the Other, so long as you feed from me when you’re still… You. Then I am giving you strength, not the Other. It’s really pretty simple… In theory it’s much the same as any kind of vampiric feeding.”   
Frank thought this over, taking it in. Then he nodded. “So… All that time I was saying I wouldn’t feed from you, because I was scared of hurting you was… Really counter productive?”   
“In a lot of ways, yes.”   
Frank smiled, slightly embarrassed. “Uh. Whoops?”   
Gerard returned the smile. “We couldn’t have known, we were doing the best with what little knowledge we had.” He leaned closer and, carefully kissed Frank.

“Want to… Uh. Give it a try now?”   
Frank pushed Gerard back, giving him a wide eyed look. “Are you fucking with me? Gerard, I doubt that offering your blood tonight is going to help anyone. You’ve already had too much strain, turning that kid. It should be me offering you blood, not the other way around!”   
Gerard leaned back, hand over his eyes again and groaned softly, which slowly turned into a laugh. “Ah shit. Yeah. The Coven are gonna be really pissed about him.”   
“Because you made another vampire without consulting them? Gerard it’s not like we had a lot of choice. It didn’t seem like the boyfriend was letting us out of that room until we did something.”   
Gerard nodded, then frowned. “Why didn’t we just… Kill them both? It would’ve been a lot easier. There was no reason why we didn’t just…”  
Frank was chuckling, Gerard turned to look at him, puzzled. “What?”   
“You really don’t know why we didn’t kill them?”   
Gerard shook his head.   
“Gee… They’re like us. We didn’t kill them because the minute that kid demanded we turned his boyfriend rather than let him die… We saw ourselves. I saw you. Would rather do anything than let… Than let go of the one he loves.”  
Frank shifted up closer. “No matter what that means.”   
Gerard smiled. “Yeah. Okay. I guess. I guess I get that.”   
“Gee?”   
“Mmm?”   
“Would it… Would it really be the worst thing… If you were to have your own coven? Is that even possible? I mean, it could be kinda nice. You, me, Mikey, Dan, maybe Phil, eventually? We could… We wouldn’t have to worry so much anymore. And we could leave behind… Everything that happened before.”   
Gerard closed his eyes, remembering. The early days, when the Coven had been so scared of the danger Frank presented, so untrusting they’d gone to extreme measures against him. Neither of them liked thinking about that time, let alone discussing it.   
“And you know the Coven aren’t gonna be… Even if they accept Dan, they’re not gonna be tolerant of the idea of him having a mortal boyfriend. We won’t give them the same hard time, they don’t have to deal with what we did. We’d let them be, let them make up their own minds.”   
Gerard nodded, still thinking this through. “It would be good. It’s a nice idea Frank but… It’s complicated. And, I don’t know if Mikey would want to leave the Coven. It’s good, it’s safe for him there.”   
Frank snorted. “Right, as if he wouldn’t go wherever you asked him to. He’s your brother, Gee. You know he’d do anything for you.”   
A small smile played on Gerard’s lips. “I’m not saying I don’t want to. I’m just saying… Maybe we have enough to worry about for now.”   
Finally he opened his eyes. “One thing is for sure, we need to try and keep… Keep it a secret there’s a new vampire. For as long as possible.”  
Frank raised an eyebrow. “Yeah, and that’s going to be about as easy as it was keeping me a secret from them, huh?”   
Gerard grinned. “About that easy, yeah.” 

Hours later, as sleep remained elusive, as so often it did vampires, Frank asked, nervously. “Gerard. Do you think… Did we do the right thing? Leaving a newborn vampire with only a human to watch him? What if…”   
Gerard’s arms wrapped around him. “You said it yourself, earlier. They’re like us, they’d do anything than let harm come to their love.”

Frank smiled, very slightly. “Hey, I realised, in a way… We both created this vampire, huh? I mean, I started it, and you were the one to turn him. Is it weird that I find that… Kinda a nice thought?”   
Gerard chuckled. “Guess it’s the closest beings like us get to being parents. So, no, I guess that’s not so weird.”  
Frank’s memory flicked back, to a conversation with The Other, when it had tricked him into thinking he could bare children. He shivered, then laughed. “Yeah, thank fuck that’s the only way.” 

A brief pause. Then Frank said. “You’re the one telling him about ‘safe sex’ with a human, okay, I’m not going there.”   
Gerard laughed, leaning in close to Frank, nuzzling against his neck, making Frank shiver for a whole new reason. “Okay, deal. So long as you be his test dummy when we teach him to feed.”   
Frank looked up, wide eyed. “Oh yeah, because the Other is gonna love that!”   
Gerard rolled his eyes. “It’ll be baby nips at the worst, I’m sure the Other will barely notice.”   
“Fine.” Frank huffed. “But we both take him on his first hunt, right?”   
“Of course.” Gerard said, leaning in again. “It’ll be a proud moment, we can’t possibly miss it.” 

They allowed themselves to indulge in these thoughts, a happy idea of a strange kind of family. The possibility of their own coven seeming not so far fetched after all.   
The Other still lurked in the back of their minds, of course, but they decided, just for a little while longer, they could not let him be the only thing in their lives, on their minds.  
They knew they couldn’t escape him for long, but anything was enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...   
>  Yes I just added Dan and Phil into the story. It was actually pretty accidental, I didn't realise I was writing them at first and then... Yeah.  
> Sorry.   
> Kinda. 
> 
> Please don't hate me?


End file.
